Like many parents, I often struggle with knowing whether I’m making the right decision for my kids, constantly questioning my choices as if I somehow don’t know what I’m doing. That goes with everything from what I feed them for breakfast to their education.

As I contemplate our plans for the upcoming school year, which now include my 4-year old son who I took out of preschool last year, it’s hard not to wonder if homeschooling is best for us.

Then the Atlanta Public Schools had a huge scandal where hundreds of teachers were discovered to have doctored standardized tests of thousands of students, perhaps for what they thought was in order to keep their jobs. One of the many horrible results of the “No Child Left Behind” law.

While we’re not in those particular school districts, the whole situation left a terrible taste in my mouth.

Now on first glance, you might think the name is provocative. And it is. The word “disobedience” doesn’t have a positive connotation when it comes to children. Or anything, really.

But it was enough to grab my attention and keep me enraptured for a pretty lengthy article (which I strongly recommend you read).

The author starts by sharing a personal story of her childhood and her relationship with her father, which she recalls quite fondly. She’d ask him anything, and he’d answer it with great detail, until one day she asked him about black holes, and he wasn’t sure. So they spent the afternoon and the next few days researching, discovering, and learning.

And, as she explained, it was at that point that her whole world was changed for the better, this discovery that her father wasn’t the fountain of knowledge, but that she had the power and the ability to find the answers on her own.

It was then quickly squashed when she went off to school.

Her instincts to speak up and offer an alternate explanation, her desire to do assignments or equations a different way, were shut down. The creativity and exploratory spirit that her parents had tried so hard to foster was deemed “undisciplined and obnoxious.”

And so, the author, now a behavioral therapist and consultant, poses these questions:

“What effects did the discouragement of creativity and independence have on my developing brain, and how much of it was permanent? How much of a role did the inflexible, rule-dependent nature of school play in my cognitive development, versus my own independent or experiential learning?”

In short: Does school help or hurt intellectual growth?

Now before I go on, I should say that I’m not at all anti-school, nor am I against rote memorization or other such techniques that I do believe have value in our educational institutions.

And I’m certainly not suggesting that we raise our kids to be disobedient. In many cases, there is only one way to do things, and while I can respect creativity, it’s also my job to keep my children safe.

But as I read this article, and continue to ponder on the author’s suggestions, I am made increasingly aware of how important it is to foster our children’s creativity and their ability to solve problems on their own, and to entertain the possibility that the way I’m doing something isn’t the best or even the right way.

And that in questioning me, it, or whatever the concept is that’s being presented, they are not necessarily being defiant, obnoxious, or even rude.

Rather, they are learning.

This doesn’t mean that we don’t eventually provide them with a solution. Or that we leave them to flounder.

But in my interpretation of this author’s hypotheses, allowing kids to be creatively disobedient is how we’re going to raise the next generation of “better innovators, problem solvers, and problem-finders.”

It’s interesting how so often we’re told that the “good” students, the “smart” ones, are those, like my oldest daughter, who sit, listen, and behave, taking in what they’ve learned and regurgitating it appropriately, while kids like my son, who has always been one to try to find another way of doing things, usually the opposite of the one I’m telling him, are seen as “troubled” – their intelligence perhaps masked by their utter, almost instinctual determination to figure it out on their own.

My son is hardly troubled. But he’s challenging. And disruptive to a linear fairly uncreative learning experience that is often the only method that today’s teachers can provide. Overfull classrooms. Low funding.

Same story, different day.

For me personally, the takeaway from this article is that rather than assume that my challenging son needs the rigors of a school setting, that require him to sit behind a desk, color in the lines, and recite the letters of the alphabet as the teacher points to them on a white board, perhaps he, most of all, will thrive in a homeschool environment, where I am free to allow him some creative breathing room. Where time behind a desk with coloring in the lines is easily balanced with time exploring the outdoors with chalk drawings strewn about my driveway.

And that being good listeners and rule followers is wonderful, so long as it’s balanced with the ability to think outside the box.

Or maybe even making an entirely new one of their very own.

Kristen Chase is a mom of 4, writer, and co-publisher of Cool Mom Picks and Cool Mom Tech, a popular shopping and trendspotting blog for moms. She’s a 2nd generation homeschooler, having been taught middle and high school by her own mother back when people were still using quills and ink wells, and is now a very well-adjusted and socialized homeschool mom herself.

142 Comments and 106 Replies

1

Wendy On Tuesday, July 19 at 5:22 am

School DOES NOT HURT intellectual growth. It encourages and facilitates it. And NO, school is not about regurgitating what you have learnt. School is about finding out new things, being shown how other people did things, and trying to find out your own way of doing it. It is, however, also about learning discipline and listening, and realizing that you are not the centre of the universe. Doctoring tests is wrong, but it doesn’t happen often, and when it does, it happens because people refuse to recognize that not all children are as academic as others. Your son isn’t as academic as your daughter, you have a problem with it, so you try to make out that he is at least as academic as she is, if not more. Give the boy a chance, and also give him the chance to learn discipline and respect.

melissa j On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:09 am

The statement “school does not hurt intellectual growth” is very broad and generalized. It can hurt intellectual, emotional, and spiritual growth just as homeschooling can. Both types of schooling are not for everyone. To say that one is better than the other is true, depending on the child and family. I have seen children with different learning styles excel in their method of learning and withdraw when forced into others. This has nothing to do with discipline and respect. When forced into going with the flow, or current teaching method, does this not motivate some who are challenged but also send a message to the other learners this is how we are going to teach and you must conform to be deemed as “academic” as the rest of the class? I believe that public or private school is best for some and homeschooling is best for others. You cannot make a generalized statement and it be true in all situations. I applaud this mother for looking for the best interest of her child and recognizing that she does not have to conform to what the educational authority deems best for her child that they do not even know. If a mother is seeing and contemplating what is best for her child and family, I doubt the student will be a “victim of homeschooling” and will thrive in his learning enviroment being taught by someone who cares more than anyone else can. In our homeschool, discipline and respect was taught long before the school years began and it should not be left up to the school to teach it. That is precisely why teaching in school is so hard on the teachers, many parents leave it up to the school to “make them behave” and therefore the teaching/learning time is shortened and those eager to learn have to wait while others are corrected and discipline by the teachers whose hands are tied by the administration. Bottom line in MANY school systems are test scores and attendance which determine funds for their school…are our children to be valued by their performance or who they were created to be-uniquely and wonderfully made?

Both public and homeschool CAN hurt intellectual growth as well as emotional well being and spiritual growth. I have seen it in both circles. Homeschooling is our choice and it works best for our family. Discipline and respect is suppose to be taught in the early years at home long before school age, then training them as they grow to continue that way. Most homeschoolers that I know do not feel they are the center of the universe. They get along with their peers as well as any age group. Both types of schooling are not for everyone, To say that one child is not as “academic” as another because they learn better using a definite method or style is completely wrong. If the mother is seeing and choosing homeschooling because it is the best interest of the child, she will be the BEST teacher he will ever have.

@Leight Ann: Learnt is a perfectly acceptable spelling of the past participle of learn. It is chiefly used in British English. Look it up.

Cincha On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:36 am

Good response, Wendy. I don’t think Ms. Chase has as much knowledge or experience about public schools as she needs to have to make such comparisons. All public schools are not the same–my rural public school, for example, goes to extreme lengths to keep the tests out of everyone’s hands, including the administrators. My school also strives NOT to ‘teach to the test.’ I did read a blog, however, where some homeschooled kids lamented not earning high ACT scores because of a lack of test prep. Sometimes, test prep is not a bad thing. I do agree that public schools currently do seem to overtest.

There are many spelling variants of many words, and the British ones seem to be the most delightful, albeit perplexing to Americans!

School for me, in most of the first eight years, was very much about regurgitating what I’d learned (I’m North American). I learned to conform to expectations (to a very accurate standard) but not to understand any more deeply than necessary. I did not learn to learn, nor did I become interested in learning for its own sake until much later. I will be watching for a similar problem with my children when they reach school. It’s certainly not a given that this will happen in their classrooms, but if it does, I hope to be able to provide them with an alternative.

There were no standardized tests in the system I grew up in. I was good at jettisoning information immediately following our non-standardized ones, though.

Not only does *school* preclude intellectual growth… It’s also physically and socially unhealthy. Want to turn little boys into monsters? Well, tell them they have to sit down all day long at a desk, until they are 18! Oh yeah, and then there’s the *forced association*…Schools successfully transform innately curious and loving children into mind, wage, and debt slaves. And every year the system graduates another crop of students lacking the capability to self-assess or self-criticize themselves. How exactly is *growth* possible for them?

Susie On Wednesday, July 20 at 1:09 pm

I wonder how many of those who embrace the industry and institution of school actually have the experience to evaluate home education? Many of us attended school, and we have either volunteered in school or even taught school. It isn’t the same to do homework with your kid. Home education is a mindset, a value in and of itself that embraces learning, independence and self-sufficiency. I don’t teach to the tests, because I don’t routinely test. When I did the standardized test with my children this last year, they tested so far above grade level I laughed.

I think it is so interesting that immediatly everyone thinks that public school needs defending and that it is under attack.

Public school is an awesome choice for parents who do not have the capacity to homeschool, do not want to homeschool or simply are not interested enough to homeschool. I liken it to the RDA embraced by so many. You can have a minumum daily allowance of Vitamin C to prevent scurvy or a higher dose to be healthy. Public school is the minimum RDA of education. Homeschool is the higher dose to make children healthy.

It really comes down to personal choice, what is best for each individual and what each person wants out of their child’s education. Is one better? In my opinion, yes. I would NEVER put my children in a public school again. (And we had a “great” school) ALL they did was teach to the test, LITERALLY. “You will be asked this on the MSP test, don’t forget!” was a phrase oft repeated. Anyway, as the saying goes, whatever. Everyone is entitiled to their opinion, right?

Michelle On Saturday, July 23 at 8:39 pm

I have chosen to homeschool my child. He is well advanced and both private and public schools said the same thing when they met him.

One: “He needs to be in with his age or he will grow up thinking he is better than everyone else.” My thought, when this was said, was he is better and clearly that scares you.

Two: “Oh good! He should be placed with his age and he can help to teach.” My thought was teach? Are you kidding me he is a little boy and he is going to school to learn not teach.

My son is now 9 years old and last year he scored 98% on his end of the year standard tests. He is enrolled as a 7th grader for this year but will be taking Algebra and Chemistry which most realize are considered high school courses.

Understand, he is still a 9 year old little boy and due to that I do not want him in high school but he still needs to be challenged and he still needs to be able to continue to excel to his fullest potential. Allowing him to excel is not something the public or private schools will allow. Even worse the schools I had spoken to were considered excellent schools and on the top lists in the nation.

The reason I mention this is if they are willing to try to do this to my child just think how many millions of children this same thing has been done to over the years. Perhaps, not on the scale of my own child but in reality they are more concerned about age and looking good than the childs education and providing an evniroment where they can excel.

2

Betsey On Tuesday, July 19 at 5:39 am

I do think it’s horrible that the author of the article feels that school squashed her desire to learn and be different. I’m sure that happens to some kids, and that’s very wrong.

On the other hand, it certainly hasn’t happened to either of my kids. My son isn’t considered a stellar student in school, but his natural curiosity is still quite strong at age 11, entering 6th grade, and we’re forever looking things up together, although at this point he mostly does it on his own. His grades have actually improved as he’s gotten older, as he’s had more opportunities to use his curiosity in the course of assignments (e.g. research projects). Both of my kids are forever using various toys in unorthodox ways to ‘invent’ things.

I’ve been encouraged by our school district, as they seem to be really doing what they can to support teachers in fostering creativity and supporting different learning styles. Of course it’s not perfect, and I do at times consider pulling my kids out and sending them to private school (I’ve considered homeschooling, and it’s just not right for us), but on the whole, it’s been pretty good.

3

Ellen Hindle On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:00 am

As a 30+ year special education teacher, working with both students and teachers under an inclusion model, I understand the thrust of this article, but write bearing some encouraging news. There are teachers out there, myself included, who make it their job every day to encourage ALL types of learning. We look at each individual student and challenge them to stretch themselves– not to compete with their classmates– more to grow as individual learners and people. I am in the unique position of working, not just with students, but with teachers. When I suggest that they look at a student’s answer in a different way, their initial response might be to say “No… it’s wrong.” However,I will say that I am making progress with traditional teachers who are slowly becoming more willing to say, “OK, I suppose that could be an answer.” My colleagues and I often answer students questions with “Figure it out.” By the second half of the school year the students begin to believe that they can “figure it out” and the look of empowerment on their faces is worth everything.

Kimberly On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:55 am

Thank you so much for this post! I know there are dedicated educators like you because I was taught by some myself. I am just glad for other people to see a positive side of educators that does not show up in the news all the time!

Thank you for all that you have done and continue to do.

Connie On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:15 am

Ellen, I so agree! I was a teacher for over 30 years (social studies and English, among other things), and I feel like the greatest thing I “taught” my students was the ability to find things out for themselves! To look for and discover the answer or solution on their own! The look on their faces when they realized THEY had found the answer–priceless. I wanted them to discover the joy of learning……THAT is the education they all deserve. The joy of learning can last a lifetime, and that is precious.

4

Ebyss On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:06 am

Great post! The Scientific American piece articulates how and why I want to homeschool so beautifully, thank you for sharing it!

People need to read Kristen’s response more carefully. She’s using the article as reassurance that she’s doing the right thing with her homeschooled children.

Every good teacher stops and considers if their way is working or needs adjustments. Kristen plainly states she is not anti-school, and people need to put their big girl panties on and realize she is giving support advice to educators. She is looking for thought-provoking discussion – not argument.

5

Amy On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:08 am

Hi Kristen. I follow your blog sporadically on PW and enjoy reading how you address the challenges of homeschooling. I am a public school counselor in the Atlanta area (Gwinnett County) For me personally, the takeaway from this article is that rather than assume that my challenging son needs the rigors of a school setting, that require him to sit behind a desk, color in the lines, and recite the letters of the alphabet as the teacher points to them on a white board,

Amy On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:10 am

Please disregard previous comment. I hit “enter” and it posted before I was ready! Apologies!

6

Marg On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:14 am

While I would almost always agree that a motivated, loving parent can do a better job of educating their own children because there are certainly restraints and difficulties that come along with facing 25 to 30 children at a time – I would also want to point out (disclaimer: I am a high school teacher) that there are lots of teachers out there in the regular school system who try very hard to respond positively and in fact encourage students who want to consider a different way to do things, or a different possible answer. I see my colleagues doing so daily. I try to do so in my own classroom. While it is absolutely essential to challenge the system and point out its inadequacies, I know it is discouraging when all teachers are tarred with the same brush.

Kimberly On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:57 am

Thank you so much for this post! I think you hit the nail right on the head with the broad strokes that teachers are often painted with. Every profession has people that are going to be deceitful and not discharge their duties adequately. Sadly, it is this small section of the profession that we hear about the most.

7

Ann On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:23 am

I appreciate the thoughts behind this entry. I agree with many of them. One thing I think was overlooked was that sometimes “stifling creativity” can lead to new discoveries and learning. For example, in our school, we teach several different ways to solve a certain kind of math problem. Once students have learned these different methods, they are free to solve the problem in a way that works best for them. However, this does mean that we “force” them to use a specific method while we are teaching it. For some kids, this is difficult because it seems much simpler to them to solve it another way. For others, learning an alternative way, opens their eyes to aspects they hadn’t considered before in their routine of solving things in the same way every time. If we simply allow them to learn one method and rely on that, we do not encourage them to “think outside the box”, to consider alternative solutions, to possibly learn new perspectives by learning other methods. Even if they choose to go back to the original way of solving problems once they know the alternatives, what they learn by being “forced” to use them is usually very valuable.

Sue V. On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:40 am

Yes! We have 4 children in public school. My 8 year old began struggling with his math homework part way through the year. We discovered he was in the middle of a lesson plan that demonstrated specific methods for multiplication. He had to show his work and was struggling. He knew how to solve the problems, but he had trouble demonstrating the specific method being taught. These sort of situations are the ones that show how important it is for parents to be involved in their child’s learning. We were able to spend extra time with him explaining that he just needed to learn the basics of this method for a week and then he could go back to solving problems using the method that was easiest for him. He has friends in his class that use the other methods. I think it is important for my child to understand that there is more than one way to get to the same answer. He wasn’t being tested on the specific methods, he was being taught that there are alternatives. Bottom line…if your child is struggling in public school it is your job as a parent to take action on behalf of your child. That may mean pulling them out and taking on teaching them at home. It may mean you have to spend a few hours with them at home helping them through it. It may mean you have to spend time at the school discussing your child’s issues with staff. Does a lack of parental involvement hurt intellectual growth? Yes, I think it does.

Vanessa On Thursday, July 21 at 1:42 pm

I agree that giving a child lots of options helps him or her decide what works best. Taking it a step further, why not let the child figure it out independently with some support. I have recently taken some Math education classes and a problem based approach to math is what many schools are switching too, based on success in other countries (Singapore, Japan, China). Instead of giving a page of multiplication problems to do, why not give the child one or two actual ‘story’ or real problem(s) and have him or her figure out a problem that actually might matter. I am a first grade teacher and this is the approach I am starting to implement in my classroom. Kids have definitely reacted positively to it and I see lots of changes in their thinking, especially in the area of reliance on the teacher. Kids are starting to realize that they can figure it out on their own and whatever way they figure it out is OKAY!
Check out this website: http://illuminations.nctm.org/ and http://mathwire.com/

It’s an interesting question and I have to admit one of the big reasons we didn’t start our son out in any school (preschool or kindergarten)… I just had this really strong feeling putting him in school would “squash” who he uniquely was in some way. If there was a school in our area that would promote allowing my son to learn in the way that he learns best, moving at his comfortable pace, then I think I would definitely be checking it out. But right now, I think yes, school would hurt my son’s intellectual growth. He would be bored and probably labeled a trouble maker with tendencies to ADD.

I have a list of reading material on this subject. My eldest needs school for the entertainment value. I cannot supply the “things going on” that keep him busy all day. I’ve spent YEARS battling for just the right services, just the right equipment and starting at Gr 4 they finally “got it” and going into Gr 7 he’s just had his best year ever in Gr 6 and is thriving and doing well with mild NLD (or autisms version of ADHD as I like to call it). My youngest also enjoys school but he’s in a self-contained class – autistic – with an excellent teacher.

So…. we do extra at home. Not hours worth. But a little (under 30min) each day has made huge gains for both. Youngest will be homeschooled at Gr 7 (he’s going into Gr 5) when we have to leave that class. Eldest will be the day he’s bullied…. which I have a feeling is coming but we’ll see.

10

Amy On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:38 am

So let me try this again! As I was saying, I read your blog sometimes, I am a public school counselor and it’s interesting for me to read about homeschooling, because I’ve never seen it in action. I really enjoy your articles!

Public school education certainly has its issues and complications, I agree. It’s difficult to educate every child in our country and like the medical field, it’s a huge workforce to prepare and educate in and of itself. And the government certainly has made it a career that many fear with NCLB holding such serious consequences for test scores that are influenced by a multitude of factors, most of which are out of a single’s teacher’s reach of control.

That being said, I take a slight issue with a phrase you used in this particular blog.

“…rather than assume that my challenging son needs the rigors of a school setting, that require him to sit behind a desk, color in the lines, and recite the letters of the alphabet as the teacher points to them on a white board…”

While I hope that I understand what you are saying (and to some extent agree with you) – that there is not nearly the amount of flexibility in a class of 25 students as there can be in a homeschool of four and that children need the freedom to inquire, challenge, to problem solve their own way – I believe you grossly simplified the rigor of many public schools. To represent that a public school education consists of coloring and recitations I believe is untrue, and I certainly know no teachers that use recitation as a teaching tool or judge the quality of a students academic progress by their fine motor skills ability.

I just wanted to say that the phrase you used seemed to be an antiquated belief about education. I am not saying that public school education somewhere doesn’t look like your vision, but in my experience (and in my setting) it certainly doesn’t represent what I see every day.

I really didn’t want this to be a missive. I apologize for the length! And again, I truly believe that homeschooling offers that flexibility and freedom for kids to learn in a unique and individualized manner that is geared specifically toward their own learning style. I just wanted to say I thought that you generalized public school education, standards and teaching techniques, and it’s not necessarily a true representation.

Sincerely,
Amy

Cathy On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:12 am

I agree with this comment. Sometimes after reading these posts it seem like some homeschool parents spend energy justifying their decision and critizing public/private school options. I begin to wonder if they are really confident with their decision.
Do what you believe is best for your particular child, focus on doing the best possible job educating your children, don’t look back with anxiety, doesn’t help.
In no way does sending a kid to public school stifle creativity for all kids. That would be like saying ‘all home-schooled kids are anti-social and funneled into one religion’

Sonya On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:42 am

Great comment! When I see articles like this, they always highlight the very worst examples of Public or Private education, while citing the very best of the homeschool environment. I think its great if you want to reinforce your homeschool choice (which I think can be a great way to educate) and do more bashing of public and private schools, but is it fair or accurate representation – not at all. There are strengths and weaknesses of any good school choice – no one is perfect- and you can easily find poor examples of any too.

Coloring (INSIDE THE LINES) and recitation is pretty much exactly what my son’s public kindergarten experience looked like. Oh, incredibly repetitive worksheets, and and waiting in line, and not being allowed to read books at his (high) reading level, and getting yelled at constantly for not sitting still. He once got in trouble for turning around in his chair to see what had made a noise behind him (he didn’t even turn the chair around — he just turned his head). Oh, and did I mention he has a sensory disorder that makes him sensitive to noise and his teacher knew this but still punished him for TURNING HIS HEAD?

We moved him to a school where the teachers are a lot more understanding of natural youthful curiosity, different learning styles, and sensory issues. But it’s a private school that is incredibly expensive and we can barely afford it.

I don’t dispute that there are excellent teachers out there teaching at good public schools. There absolutely are and I know some of them and they work hard at what they do and deserve praise. But it’s a reality that not every family has access to a good public school environment that is suitable for their child — in fact, many, many families don’t. Parents are complaining about the state of schools because we have good reason.

JaneyBrainey On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:42 am

I would like to echo what Amy is saying. I have 21+ years in elementary and secondary public education and I really do feel like we encourage children to think creatively. Yes, they have to memorize things like letters, sounds, spelling words, etc. I don’t think that is bad. I see teachers every day that are reaching out to meet the needs of each individual student.
Parents must decide for themselves what is best for their child. For some it is waiting a year before kindergarten, or choosing to homeschool instead of public or private options. There is no perfect way, and for some parents it is a combination of some years at home and some at school.
I don’t believe that teaching ends at 3 o’clock on school days. Learning should be continuous. There are many life lessons to be learned.

Cincha On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:42 am

Ann, your reply thoughtfully addressed the issues Kristen brings up in her post. I am a high school teacher, and I agree that public schools, like any educational setting, offer many advantages and some disadvantages to children. I think for anyone to discount either method is shortsighted thinking; however, public schooling does address our country’s desire to educate everyone, no matter how poor or disabled. And for that, I am so thankful for public education!

another mom On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:48 am

I agree! I am curious as to when Kristen has had a recent experience with a public school classroom environment (not a preschool). While public school education is not perfect, I think schools have moved way beyond simply coloring in the lines and memorization.

Angeerah On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:24 am

Well said, Amy!

Debbie J. On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:00 pm

“To represent that a public school education consists of coloring and recitations I believe is untrue, and I certainly know no teachers that use recitation as a teaching tool or judge the quality of a students academic progress by their fine motor skills ability”

Maybe not in your particular school but in my experience in having children in several public schools, it is like this. The state core curriculum MUST be followed on schedule, the federal tests MUST be passed, and it leaves children no room to learn like children are supposed to learn. There is no breathing room, no room for differentness.

I know a retired kgarten teacher who was substituting and had to stop because it bothered her so. She wasn’t allowed to sing songs and teach the children about rhythm (a math concept, by the way), because she didn’t have time for that. No time for learning through play, which to me is what little kids ought to be doing. It was all about the tests and making sure kids would do well on them. They teach them concepts before they are even developmentally ready to learn them.

Dee Dee On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:38 pm

Amy, I’m glad to hear that the school system in which you work is different from the scenario described. Unfortunately, the school my youngest son attended for a single year (Kindergarten) was not yours. Children were required to sit quietly at their tables, listening to the teacher or working on projects for the bulk of a full school day. Even lunch time was heavily regulated, where students had to sit quietly at their cafeteria table after finishing lunch until the bell for lunch recess rang. It was very different from the Kindergarten classes my older two had attended more than 15 years earlier, which had emphasized learning through play and games, was a half day program, and encouraged movement.

My son often was chided for coloring outside the lines or using the wrong color. One coloring sheet in particular I recall involved pumpkins. We had visited the pumpkin patch as a family, where he was enchanted by the ghost pumpkins. When he colored his sheet white, his teacher took him to task. I had a choice to keep him in a school that was unable to offer many of the experiences his home educated brother had – choir, art classes, trips to plays, symphonies, parks and museums, and an afternoon long gathering of friends – or continue to keep him a school that did not seem attuned to the natural development of children.

I think it’s something that parents need to consider for their children, and I appreciate that you are thinking about your kids’ needs individually. As a (now on long-term leave) high school teacher, I know I would not do a great job homeschooling my kids. I see what I do with their toddler selves right now, and until they are older, I really can’t see myself covering all they need to learn while balancing my own patience levels.

My son is looking forward to Kindergarten (still a year away), and he loves “school” right now. My daughter will be the more challenging student for the school system; I see that already. Still, for me, I value the skills of learning to adapt to group environments *as well as* spreading those creative individual wings.

As a teacher in the NYC system, I didn’t see a lot of the stringent “stay in the lines” sort of teaching. We have students from so many different backgrounds and abilities that bending and adapting is necessary for the teachers AND the students. That’s invaluable learning right there.

I don’t mind most of the homeschooling articles on this site, but some of them, like this one, read like homeschooling propaganda. Sure there are articles out there about sad or horrible or unethical things that have happened in public schools, but I’ve also met many tragic victims of homeschooling. I think that you and Ree and others who post here go about it the right way, but that doesn’t change that there’s a reason why homeschooled kids are often stereotyped as unsocialized, unprepared for higher education, or just plain “weird.” Thankfully, the homeschooling trend seems to be on its way up with increasing amounts of co-ops and resources. Personally, I thrived in a public school setting. I know I’m lucky and that not everyone does, but for me and millions and millions of other kids out there, it was the right choice. You may want to be careful in the future of writing articles that could isolate your readership (your title, along with that in the article you quoted, was very provocative); I am open minded and I like reading about others’ decision to homeschool (and once I have children, who knows, maybe I will, too) and their experiences and ideas, but if I continue to find posts about the “evils” of public education, I and others like me will stop reading…and then you’ll be preaching to the choir.

Lindsay, I applaud you for being a student who is willing to read things with an open mind. But I’ll warn you that a threat that you will stop reading posts (or anything) that you don’t agree with is part of what helps cause radicalization of groups and extremism. Only when people with a dissident voice stop stepping in to offer a second opinion or to question what is being said, are the people of a group able to move extremely left or right of center because they have stopped being exposed to thoughts on the other side.

Take a look at what has happened in our political system, for example. There are people on the “extreme left” and people on the “extreme right” who join together to cheer each other on and get one another riled up. They are no longer listening to the opposition so conversation is shut down. Please don’t threaten to do that in any aspect of your life or you will end up regretting it.

This article said nothing about the “evils” of public school. It recounted one person’s story, linked to another article, and posed a question. It’s doing the opposite of what you say it’s doing. It’s starts with a question; not an answer.

melissa j On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:14 am

Amanda Marie On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:40 am

I agree too, Lindsay. I don’t have kids (too young) and therefore never had to make the decision myself, but I attended public schools my whole life. It never seems like the Pioneer Woman Homeschooling posts even suggest that public/private schooling have their benefits, but only discuss what’s wrong with those types of schooling and why homeschooling is the remedy.

I excelled in public school, partly because I could compete with other students and also work together with my peers. I don’t see how homeschooling can prepare kids in the same way that is necessary for a career in the US today.

I would never homeschool my future children. I plan on devoting a lot of time to my career, and want my kids to have as many diverse peers as I did growing up and the opportunity to interact with many different teachers with different styles and personalities. I think it helps children learn to adapt and make the best of what they have.

Sonya On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:43 am

I am in total agreement!

Jennifer W On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:46 am

Very well written, Lindsay. I very much agree. I feel like this article is just another way to make me feel like a horrible parent because I send my child to public school.

Cathey On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:05 am

I’m sorry you all feel you have been attacked. These blogs have always approached this subject with a “live and let live – it’s not right for everyone” attitude. I did not home school and in my area, where the schools are, for the most part, some of the best in the nation, and there are not many who do. Sadly for the homeschooling reputation, the two or three I have seen are horrendous and shouldn’t be allowed to do it – for reasons I need not go into here.

Your child’s education is a very personal decision and one that must be approached with a cool head and as much information as you can get. As a potential grandmother, I am thankful for the insights I have gained here, hoping that they can help me foster a creative, thinking mind in any grandchildren I may be lucky enough to have. In the mean time, if I don’t like what’s said, just like on TV, I can turn it off.

PR Roots On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:11 am

I’m not sure that saying it’s the “right” choice for millions of kids is very accurate. I think it’s the “only” choice for millions of kids. I didn’t see that this article was about the evils of public schooling. It sounded to me like the author was simply pointing out the factors that she takes into consideration when considering homeschooling. Of course she sees the flaws in the public school system. She wouldn’t be homeschooling if she hadn’t found an overwhelming number of flaws in the public system.

Pointing out these flaws isn’t to say that public school teachers are terrible or to hurt anyone’s feelings. I think most teachers work very hard and love the kids they teach. But personally, I don’t see how the public school system could ever be successful. A mass amount of children from diverse backgrounds are all shoved into the same mold and expected to fit. It’s just not reasonable. And that’s why so many people who are able to, chose private schools or homeschooling.

If someone thinks homeschoolers are weird, that’s their own closed mindedness shining through. I admire those who make the choice to homeschool and commit themselves to being 100% responsible for their child’s learning. Right now, my kids go to public school but if things keep going the way they have been, we may be homeschooling soon.

And MANY homeschoolers are educated far beyond their peers, are very well socialized and therefore can hold a conversation with any age person, confident in their walk of life and far from weird. I can also say that I love all the time we have together, our relationships are deep, and my kids are normal. They play sports, have tons of friends(public/private/and homeschooled), and have began learning lifeskills long before many of their peers who have to sit in a classroom for 8 hours a day. I read this blog on Homeschooling because thats what we do. If you are offended by the subject matter, why are you reading it? In no way does this article say that you are a terrible parent if you send your children to public school. If you feel bad then maybe you should research it and see if it would work for you. Homeschooling and public school is not for everyone. You have to do what is best for YOUR family and not judge others for what they choose.

ck On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:34 am

Thanks Lindsay, well written.

I thought this would be another “preaching to the choir” post. Apparently enough of the readers take at least a small bit of umbrage at this.

I’ll reiterate what I’ve posted more than once (and gotten no response on): if it’s religious and personal theological beliefs that are reasons behind homeschooling, why are not the mores and beliefs taught at home/church strong enough to influence the children exposed to public school?

Charity On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:40 am

Wait, you’re open-minded, yet if you read something you don’t like, don’t agree with, or offends you, you’ll quit reading? How is that different from a “close minded” person, exactly?

Also, how is it acceptable to say that there’s a reason that homeschooled kids are stereotyped? So if it’s wrong to say that there’s a reason why people of different races are stereotyped, or people with certain disabilities are stereotyped, why are homeschoolers fair game?

Funnily enough, I’m not even a homeschool parent. I was just struck by the double standards in your comment.

M On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:51 am

I agree w/ Lindsay. Isn’t it sad that in a time when so many wonderful teachers are having to find different careers due to budget cuts and smaller enrollment numbers, articles like this (and even more so, headlines like this) call schools in general into question?

I can understand how parents of public schooled children could view this post as “homeschooling propaganda.” The title is a bit of a challenge. Plus the article is focusing on an extremely specific and small negative area that many (but not all) public schools deal with. There were no looks at what works well in public school (and even though I’m a homeschooling parent I believe there are many.)
I would ask those of you who are put off by this tone to take it in this context: it is merely highlighting one area that might be a problem which you can take definite measure to correct without needing to homeschool. The author of the article clearly shows how her supportive parent was able to counteract any negative aspect in her public school experience.
Often I read or hear negative stories or accounts in homeschooling. My first response is to bristle, but I try very hard to consider if the story has any validity and then see what I can do with that while continuing down the path I feel is best for my children at this time.
I hope this helps a little bit.

Jeanette On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:55 am

Why, if you aren’t a homeschooler yourself, would you even bother reading the “Homeschooling” section of this blog? If you feel ‘isolated’…well, it’s because you aren’t a homeschooler.

Lindsey On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:05 am

A lot of people who are not homeschoolers read this blog – Just because you aren’t a homeschooler yourself doesn’t mean you aren’t interested in the topic and may be here to learn something new about homeschooling.

Cary S. On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:32 am

Lindsay, I am glad that you are reading posts about homeschooling before you have children. This will help you make an informed decision when you do. I don’t think that this post talks so much about the “evils” of public school (and there are some) as it is asking a question. The author, Kristen Chase, is discerning a decision to homeschool. We parents tend to wonder all of the time if we are making the right decision. We want the best for our children and want to avoid making mistakes, even though we all know we will.

Samantha On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:42 am

Jeanette, I am not a homeschooler, and that is because I do not have children. Does that mean I am not entitled to read articles about children and their education? It was rude for you to reply to Lindsay’s comment in a way that is condescending because she isn’t a homeschooler. She has the freedom and the right to read and comment on whatever blog with whatever subject she feels moved by. I read this blog every day because I find the topics intriguing and thought-provoking. Are we, as non-homeschooling people, not allowed to participate in thought-provoking dialogue? It is people like you who make parents like Jennifer W feel like they are horrible parents because their children go to public school. Homeschooling shouldn’t be treated as if it is only for an elite few and everyone else has no business in participating in discussions about the subject. I am terribly disappointed that you would attack someone else’s opinion in such a demeaning way.

girlseven On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:44 am

It hardly seems appropriate to make threats, when you don’t like what you are reading. It’s important to show many sides of one subject, thus to get a complete point of view. Our country knows that our school system is in trouble, we are not helping to mold innovative thinkers, and more and more children are being left in the dark. I have three children in the public school system, in a suburban neighborhood of Seattle, and it is supposed to have some of the best schools in the city. Well, even my school is underfunded with too large of class sizes, so no matter what a teacher’s intentions, they are limited by their circumstances. Why be scared of a little honesty?

ck On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:54 am

Jeanette – really? Your statement is a blatant example of exclusiveness concerning homeschooling – well, schooling in general. I would challenge you to open your mind and see a bigger academic picture than what you currently are doing. Do you only read blogs or books or articles that totally are “you” or agree with your viewpoint? C’mon.

And, believe it or not, public school parents indulge in homeschooling when their offspring are not physically at school, i.e. life experiences, activities outside of school, church, READING; we just don’t always make a big deal about it.

Debbie J. On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:10 pm

“Why, if you aren’t a homeschooler yourself, would you even bother reading the “Homeschooling” section of this blog? If you feel ‘isolated’…well, it’s because you aren’t a homeschooler.”

Totally agree.

Lisa- Domestic Accident On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:25 pm

I don’t homeschool, but I read this section. First, I get an extraordinary amount of information on good books and resources for my kids, and second, I like learning about all types of education and parenting. You never know when you may need to make changes in your life or with your children. Not to mention, I appreciate having a greater understanding of people in all walks of life. I don’t live on a ranch, I don’t have an expensive camera, and I don’t cook gourmet meals every night, but I like Ree’s other sections as well.

melaniek On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:53 pm

“Why, if you aren’t a homeschooler yourself, would you even bother reading the “Homeschooling” section of this blog? If you feel ‘isolated’…well, it’s because you aren’t a homeschooler.”

I posted my response to this below, but I just wanted to make sure that I pointed out, that many of us who send our kids to public or private school, do not wash our hands of the responsibility of educating our children with that decision. I have purchased a couple of books and a game on the recommendations from this section of the website to supplement my children’s public education, and I do not believe I am in the minority here. I feel the tone is condescending that we non-homeschooling parents would have no use for such ideas. Is that honestly how you feel??? That we non-homeschooling families do nothing for our children’s education???

Ingrid On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:03 pm

@ Jeanette and Debbie J:

Ok, I agree that if you read a forum that is explicitly dedicated to a lifestyle other than the one you’ve chosen, you’ll probably feel isolated. If I were to read a blog that was by, for and about farming methods, for example, I might feel like a foreigner on that blog since I am not a foreigner. It would be silly for me to complain that all that when they talk about how glad they are to be farmers, I feel isolated. After all, it’s my choice to read their articles or not.

However, let’s not make others feel unwelcome! As much as I love the lifestyle, homeschool does tend to be isolating. Without changing who we are, without disguising why we love what we do, let’s welcome those who have chosen a different lifestyle. They might appreciate and/or learn from what we have to say, and we might appreciate and/or learn from what they have to say — especially if we are really interested in education, and if part of education involves expanding horizons.

Oh, I disagree with the “why bother reading” point. There’s plenty here about the way the homeschoolers writing here work their way through learning and teaching, that’s interesting even if your kids go out to school.

I don’t know why people feel defensive about their own decisions to send their kids to school based on other people’s decision not to. I guess it’s a natural reaction when someone speaks as a proponent of a different approach, but if you’re happy with your own decision, why worry, and why blame others for your worry?

For context, my child goes to “school” and is not yet three years old. She gets a lot out of it. I don’t know if there’s any homeschooling in our future or not!

Jeanette, is it really a mystery to you as to why some of us who don’t homeschool would read a an entry in the this section entitled “Does school help or hurt intellectual growth?”. I think that since this is about school vs. homeschooling our opinions carry just as much weight as yours here.

Melissa D. On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:32 pm

I agree with Chris. Just because a parent chooses to put their child in school does not mean that he or she does not seek to enrich that child’s education outside the classroom.

I do not plan to homeschool my son but I love reading the homeschooling posts on http://www.thepioneerwoman.com because it gives me so many creative ideas to help give my son a love of learning. It is also interesting to read about the reasons people homeschool so I can try to either ensure that my son’s school is addressing that concern or that I am addressing it in other ways.

I find it ironic that in a post about expanding how we gain knowledge, people are saying people should not bother reading for more information on homeschooling.

Laura On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:47 pm

“Why, if you aren’t a homeschooler yourself, would you even bother reading the “Homeschooling” section of this blog? If you feel ‘isolated’…well, it’s because you aren’t a homeschooler.”

Well – even if the original post hadn’t put a bad taste in my mouth regarding homeschooling, this comment sure would!! I am not a homeschooler, but I am the mother of a 3 year old for whom we will soon be making decisions regarding her education. I also work with a research group for a large university, where we are currently studying the social skills (and lack thereof) of students in low income public schools. So to act as though I have no business reading the Homeschooling section is dismissive and presumptuous. I read this section of PW’s site because it is largely well written, informative, and unbiased.

I did not intend to comment on this particular post or even Lindsay’s comment (nor do I comment on many) because I am really just reading to gather information…storing it in my head as I mull over my options. Until reading Jeannette’s comment. I suppose I am speaking up, oddly enough, in defense of what I believe is a wonderfully run blog that has always shown respect to the readers, no matter their background. I feel like comments such as these do nothing but bring it down. Never before have I felt like this was for “cool kids” only or that there was some sort of club of which I was not a member. And that is a shame.

a chris, I think you said it well.

Wen On Tuesday, July 19 at 2:55 pm

@Jeanette and @DebbieJ: those of us who don’t homeschool read this column because we like to keep an open mind and we want to learn about how other people see the world. We don’t think we know it all, like you two seem to. And don’t think for a second that those who don’t homeschool never teach our children anything. We do, whenever there is a chance or a need for it. We answer our children’s questions, research things, show them how to research things, teach them how to cook and do things around the house or garden, tell them what flowers and trees are called, help them with their alphabet or whatever. But we don’t pretend that taking a child to the shop is a lesson that should be on the curriculum. We can’t all afford to stay at home and homeschool. Please stop trying to make us feel bad about sending our children to school. Many children thrive in schools, and there an awful lot of bad homeschooling parents out there, too.

Jeanette On Wednesday, July 20 at 7:17 am

Okay…my point was completely missed. It just seems funny to me that people come over to the homeschooling section of this blog and act surprised because someone writes an article which may not embrace the notion of traditional schooling.

I didn’t think there was anything that would make anyone feel ‘bad’ in what I said-just an observation.

In order to be innovators & problem-solvers, we & our kids have first got to practice being thinkers. I’m mid 40′s & I have noticed that a lot of my contemporaries lack this skill or desire to think about things – scientific things, political things, theological, social… they just are not interested. There are errands to run, work to do, kids to organize, games to get to, entertainment to pay for — and thinking isn’t seen as having significant value.

But remember how those 3 & 4 year old’s question everything? And think about crazy things all day long? (If they’re moving around & exposed to things & not sitting in front of a screen.) I think that we, in America at least, have traded mindless entertainment for thinking. And this falls more to the parents than the teachers. Most teachers don’t have time to encourage thinking & the rabbit-trails & endless questions involved. Teachers have a group that has to get from A to B so there is not opportunity in most classes to venture into the unknown and exciting. But at home – whether it’s all day or it’s evenings & weekends – the time & opportunity is there. That’s where my siblings & I got it. Our 17 years of public schools didn’t quash it. Our parents questioned and answered and looked up and provided more books than would fit on our shelves.

My kids get so tired of me asking leading questions in response to their questions:
Paul “how many seconds in a day?”
Mom “well, how many seconds in an hour?”
Paul “Mom! Just tell me!”
But how much better if I lead him through it? It takes a bit more time & energy; if his question is about the distance around the earth I might have to stop & look it up; if his question is about people interrupting him because he’s younger (& talks a lot) we might need to stop & have a long conversation about being considerate of others and dealing with disappointment; if his question is about how something is made or how something grows it may require some activity and experimentation.

Thinking is worth giving some time & energy to — and if the time & energy is taken away from running to friends’ houses or playing video games or going to sports activities that’s okay because we need to find a balance that includes plenty of time devoted to exercising the mind.

okay, first, i have worked in public schools the majority of my adult life, and worked in ‘moderate’ or invisible special needs. almost all of the students i really loved working with the most had learning attributes like your son’s. secondly, many of my friends over the course of the same 20+ year period have been homeschoolers, and there are many in my local area. i also have a 16 yo AP child, a nearly 13yo son with asperger’s syndrome (if i had homeschooled him, we wouldn’t have survived – lol) and a 3yo who at 2 was dying for more peer interaction than she was getting at home, so she started preschool early.

My take on it is there are good teachers and bad in both. there is added peer pressure in some schools to not look too smart or work too hard (my schools growing up, and i was one of those challenging students always wanting to know more, know why more and more)

I found in my years in public schools that in the long run, the teachers who challenged the students and encouraged the students to learn and grow and explore were the ones most appreciated by their students. The same is true for the homeschoolers i see. I watch some kids around not being challenged in homeschooling and they are clearly bored and frustrated.

please do not be afraid of statistics and scare articles about schools, don’t assume the homeschooling perspective that students are being squashed intellectually in schools is the whole truth and know there are good teachers everywhere doing the best they can to foster learning.

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Elaine On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:07 am

Great post. My boyfriend and I are a long time away from having kids, but I’m convinced that self-directed learning should play a part in their education. When my boyfriend went to school, he often felt oppressed by the convention and the aversion toward creativity. I’m worried that will turn my kids off of learning and teach them that it isn’t fun. But then there is a difference in personalities…I, for one, am a serial rule follower, so I thrived in an environment like public school where there was one way to do things and one correct answer. My boyfriend, although he excelled academically, hated public school for the very same things.

I’ve only read the post so far and will go back for the article, but I wholeheartedly agree that school stifles learning. It did for me. I was a “gifted” student who skipped grades because I was so far ahead. But I was still separated from classmates and was often punished for asking questions that the teachers weren’t prepared for or didn’t want to answer.

By the time I was in junior high, I was so bored with school that I did crossword puzzles and other word games to get through the school day. Boredom set in, I wasn’t challenged, and I generally was told to just be quiet and sit still so I didn’t disturb anyone else.

I wanted to be so many things in life. I had multiple career paths and wanted to explore subjects to see which one(s) I really wanted to be involved with for a lifetime, but I was told that I needed to do the type of job that I “tested well for” so each year, depending on what I was interested in at the time, I answered the career tests based on what I wanted to do. It worked every time, but just left the counselor frustrated because she couldn’t put me in a box.

To this day, I love learning and watch what my husband calls “nerd shows” and read “nerdy non-fiction books.” I feel like I didn’t live up to my potential and have a hard time accepting that I have had a successful career because I’m not working in one of the fields that I had always daydreamed of doing. I don’t want my boys to dislike school or learning. And I really don’t want them to look back at their life and feel that it was wasted or that they didn’t follow their passions. That’s what I’ve chosen to homeschool.

I think the take away here is that in a public school setting the child has to fit the learning environment….the environment has a very limited ability to flex to fit the child. In a homeschool environment–with smaller numbers, a very deep and long term relationship with the student, and way more flexibility in terms of curriculum, time and approach–it is almost guaranteed that the learning environment will adapt to fit the child. I home schooled my son for 4 years, along with some other kids who found out and showed up. It worked very well for him. On the other hand my daughter, who was actually much easier to live with, was impossible for me to teach. She really wanted a teacher who was not her mother. I, personally, put in my time at school and got most of my education on my own after hours. The results of these three different experiences; son with GED, daughter at Bennington College with scholarships, and me with a B.S. in Sociology that was interesting but doesn’t directly pertain to how I earn my living. All three of us are really good at conversation over breakfast.

The part of the article that stuck out for me, was when studies showed that students taught by an inexperienced teacher that used ‘hands-on’ techniques and pupil engagement learned more than when taught by a more traditional, experienced teacher. That gives me more hope that I am on the right path in homeschooling my children.

I walked away from this article with a renewed determination to ask my children more about their input on certain subjects, give less instruction in other topics, and in general, ask them more questions. It’s a good reminder for all of us, home schoolers and public schoolers.

Michelle On Saturday, July 23 at 8:41 pm

98% of all teachers graduated at the bottom of their class. It was not like this until after the 1960′s when the teachers union went to D.C. Prior, to that the teachers union was considered a communist party.

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Amanda On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:31 am

I have to agree with many other posters that as a public school teacher, this article was pretty offensive. Especially when accompanied by comments like “And disruptive to a linear fairly uncreative learning experience that is often the only method that today’s teachers can provide.” Number one, I can assure you that the experience in my classroom is anything but “uncreative”. Teachers are by far some of the most creative people out there. I don’t know a teacher who is not constantly looking for fun and different ways to present the content they are teaching so that students are more successful while at the same time having fun and learning to be independent problem solvers and thinkers. Which leads me to my next point, I’m truly sorry if you have extensive, recent experience with a public school system who primarily teaches by rote memorization and recitation. I’ve been teaching for 10 years, in multiple systems and schools, and that style of teaching has by far been the minority of what I have witnessed. One of the biggest things we strive for is to create independent thinkers. In fact you will see that in the vision and mission statement for many public schools. We employ techniques that require students to think outside the box. I just think you are either operating from an understanding of schools as they may have been many years ago or you have had the misfortune of only experiencing the country’s least progressive school.

“It’s interesting how so often we’re told that the “good” students, the “smart” ones, are those, like my oldest daughter, who sit, listen, and behave, taking in what they’ve learned and regurgitating it appropriately, while kids like my son, who has always been one to try to find another way of doing things, usually the opposite of the one I’m telling him, are seen as “troubled” – their intelligence perhaps masked by their utter, almost instinctual determination to figure it out on their own.”

I’m sorry if this has been your limited experience. In reality, most teachers will genuinely enjoy teaching a student who thinks on their own and questions (respectfully). I do consider a student who listens well “well-behaved”, but I don’t necessarily consider them a “good student” or the “brightest student”. I push these students to “regurgitate” more than the information I have given them so that they will grow. Good teachers (who really are the majority) figure out what each type of student needs and helps them to grow and succeed. They do not teach their class of 25, they teach 25 individual students.

On a side note, and I fully admit my experience with homeschoolers is very limited probably much like your school experience (that is one reason I read sites like this one), the majority of homeschoolers I know primarily teach using workbooks. Is that the epitome of creativity?

Steph On Wednesday, July 20 at 10:57 pm

Perhaps your experience is limited to “good” teachers because You are one. I worked in multiple public schools. Each school fell into one of three types: one for advanced students, one for primarily local students, and one type filled with ‘left behind’ students. My position was funded by a separate government agency, and my responsibilities included identifying students who needed extra help, but would most likely not qualify for special education resources.

Most of the teachers at the advanced schools were great teachers, creative interested attuned people who would go out of their way for the students. These folks were a pleasure to work with, they knew which students would benefit well before I made my assessment.

Most of the teachers at the local school were nice caring people, but not exceptionally creative. They checked the boxes, helped the kids where they could, and counted down the days ’till the end of the school year just as enthusiastically as any of the students. These teachers were glad for my assistance and left plenty of room to do what I needed to do.

Most of the teachers at the last type of school, were content in their tenure, focused on their ‘favorite’ students, the students who responded well to their teaching method. These teachers were glad to push the non-favored students into my programs. I found many of these students would have favorite teachers, the teachers who’s methodology fit their learning style. The years the students were taught by the ‘favorite’ teacher, their results & grades were often above average.

Each of these types of teacher were at all the schools. Each ‘type’ cares about the student, but not each type seems to have the ability to work flexibly with different types of learning. It seemed like gravity pulling the ‘types’ together. Perhaps the catalyst was a difference in pay, the clout of the administration, something else outside my realm of accessibility. Perhaps it is peer pressure or teaching culture in the individual schools. I don’t know, but it would be very interesting to see someone study the phenomenon.

Anyhow, since many parents cannot choose what school their child attends, we often find ourselves stuck with one of these clusters. If that cluster doesn’t work for your child, you probably have a negative view of public schooling. If, conversely, your child is in the ‘right’ group, you’d probably have a very positive view of public schooling.

*Also, many homeschoolers use workbooks as a reference point, and use the rest of their lives to reinforce. Does anyone really just use workbooks to teach reading? Or do they also point out the words on signs and cereal boxes? Do workbooks some how negate creativity? Is creativity defined solely by hand made materials?*

I’m personally awed by the number of teachers who read homeschooling blogs. I think it’s great to look outside of the box for ideas and inspiration!

Douglas W Roberts On Wednesday, July 27 at 7:08 pm

I am not surprised that a public school teacher would find this article offensive. Big surprise! It was a remarkably cautious article.

Hopefully more parents will find out just how much children can learn if they teach their children themselves. Institutional education, especially the public ones, is designed for the teachers and administrators and not for the students.

There’s so many more opportunities for positive social experiences and learning.

We have done both. The institutional, public school experiences our children had were in expensive, suburban schools. Homeschooling is just so, so much better.

Thank you for this post! One doesn’t have to agree with everything you said in order to get the meaning and your love for your kids behind it. I appreciate your transparency! A lot can be said in both directions but one truth remains, it’s not the same now for kids as it was for us when we were public schooled. They don’t make teachers (in my area) like the ones who encouraged me in my creativity, either. So, homeschool on, Mama!

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Laura On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:36 am

William Butler Yeats once said, “Education is not the filling of a bucket but the lighting of a fire.” As a public school teacher, I identify closely with this quote and how it shapes my teaching philosophy. Ms. Kuszewski wrote an interesting article, but it is not without some gaps. Teachers are taught pedagogy (how to teach) in higher education, and rote memorization is practically demonized as being the lowest form of learning–see Bloom’s Taxonomy or Depth of Knowledge for more information. While I have no doubt that some educators rely on this method as a way to prepare for testing, in my experience, most do not as they know how boring and ineffective it is for all involved. Many of the teaching strategies that Ms. Kuszewski skewers are more of the traditional, authoritarian styles that may have been what we all experienced in childhood but not what are lauded today, especially as older generations of teachers who were taught to teach that way retire. To paint all teachers’ styles as similar is incorrect, oversimplistic, and unfair.

I love encouraging my students to take on multiple approaches to solving a problem. I always listen and encourage students to share when they have come up with an alternative solution to solving a problem– even when it is not correct! That provides a valuable teaching opportunity, like Ms. Kuszewski mentioned. My students laugh and quote with me, “There’s more than one way to get to the beach!” meaning that, while there’s usually a fastest, most efficient way to solve a problem, there are usually multiple ways to get the solution.

I agree with her that more can be done to foster creativity, but that responsibility falls on both parents and teachers. I read research for my gifted coursework that found that parents are often the first to teach the “one right way” of thinking when their three year old draws a purple kangaroo and they tell them that while the picture is good, kangaroos aren’t purple. As a writing teacher, I also find that parents tend to lower their child’s risk taking abilities in writing when they demand that all words be spelled correctly. What’s left is a boring narrative with very easy words that the child is sure to spell correctly.

I know this is a long post, and I apologize, but I do feel the need to clear up some misconceptions that seem to be pervasive about public education.

NCMom On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:09 am

Melanie I On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:41 am

Thank you! Thank you!! Thank you!!! I pulled my kids out of public school because they were being hurt by the school system here. Since we began homeschooling I’ve seen my children blossom and grow in areas that would not have been possible in a public school setting.

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Bryn On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:46 am

It sounds like there are two different learning styles here: one that is suited for institutional learning, and one suited for individualized learning. I think it’s amazing that in 2011, we now have so many alternatives to traditional school for our kids, so they can learn at their own pace, and in a way that makes sense for them.

Schools are a place for children who can be self-starters, sit and listen, and can promote critical thinking, but they are a place where 1 educator is in charge of teaching sometimes up to 40 kids at a time. This type of environment just doesn’t lend itself to the kids who need to learn and interact with their surroundings in a different way.

I don’t think schools are bad, and I don’t think alternative learning resources are bad. I think it’s a matter of different, and isn’t it great that we can all be different but learn what we need to to be successful?

I hear you and enjoy your thoughts. I, too, thrived in the public school system. The road that I took to home education for my children was not the norm. Just 18 mos before deciding to home educate I swore I never would. The interesting thing is that once you teach your children at home you start to realize how narrow mass learning and the factory education approach really is. I have a 21 year old in college and have been teaching my children for eleven years. The fact is that when the teacher to student ratio is 30-1, there isn’t a lot of room for inquisitive behavior or do it your way approach. Additionally, the standardized test push in recent years has only made creative teaching styles harder to implement. Recently, when speaking to a college professor I asked what he considered the number one problem with new his new students. He stated that they don’t think. He cannot get their opinion from them. They seem uncomfortable with stating their opinion and have even been known to resent being asked. If this is what we are producing in the way of students I am deeply disturbed, and that is true whether they are being taught at home or in an institution.

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Rachel in Texas On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:50 am

GREAT BLOG!! It does not read like you’re pushing your ideas, but even if it does that’s OKAY!! The very reason we started our homeschool journey more than 16 years ago is because I could not stand to stifle my beautiful, creative, and light hearted daughter! I worked in the public schools before I homeschooled, and I knew how things were. I wanted my children in an environment that fostered their interests and abilities. All four of them have done wonderfully!

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Laura On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:50 am

There will be many who don’t experience the negatives of public school. Hooray! However, much of what you described in your post is exactly why we pulled our daughter from public school 3 years ago. Nevermind that she knew the material prior to enrolling, the teacher thought she should “slow down and let the other kids catch up.” Yes, that is exactly what the teacher told us.

My daughter LOVES to learn and asks a million questions. Slowly, day by day, I was seeing that light fade and although I did NOT want to homeschool, I did want to help my child.

Is homeschool the answer for every child. No. But public school isn’t either.

Unfortunately there are plenty of teachers out there who only value and encourage one type of learning and would not be a good fit to encourage creativity in kids like your son. But fortunately today there really are a lot who do! When I was getting my degree in early childhood education I felt like one of the strongest lessons pushed on us at my university was that kids and people all learn differently and that is a wonderful thing. The professors taught us that it was our job as their teachers to find various ways to reach each student and make lessons meaningful for them. The true colors personality assessment was one of my favorite things to learn of and apply.

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Annie Zepeda On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:58 am

I’m sorry to see so much negative feedback on this article, since it embodies many of my own opinions about public school and what I’ve been seeing come away from it. I can’t deny that there are some great teachers out there, teachers who love what they are doing and work hard to ensure that their students are really understanding and exploring the material presented. But there are very definite constraints in a classroom in order to maintain order, and these constraints don’t allow a lot of exploration of a subject. I know that a lot of teachers will say that if a student is very interested in a subject they should do some additional research into it on their own time, but school days continue to get longer and homework piles up quickly. On the other side of it, I have seen homeschool parents who would do well to put their kids in public school. Any school. I have seen homeschool parents fail their children and it is sad, but it only goes to show that there is no “pat” answer. I’m watching my nephew, a 10 year old in public school, and it just bothers me to see how much he doesn’t care about his education. His class has particular reading tests to see what their reading comprehension level is, and he will take the test without really reading the book and fail the test, and then re-take it, continuing to re-take it until he passes it. And his parents applaud him for being a good reader. But who is really failing that child? His teachers beg his parents to step in, and his parents refuse because they see no problem with it. I can only speak as someone on the outside looking in, but what I see is that good teachers can’t make up for distracted parenting, and amazing parenting can’t make up for unmotivated teaching. There are ways to lose on every side, but you have to find your own “win” and not judge someone else just because what worked for them isn’t what worked for you. And to not take it personally when something like this comes up- not every teacher teaches the same way, but the ones who take short cuts can ruin it for all of us.

I think this post highlights a very important point – education at the cost of learning is no education at all. It has also reminded me to revisit why I home educate and what my goals are. Lastly, I’d say that any learning, at home or otherwise, that doesn’t create and foster inquisitive behavior is poor learning. I’ve seen both home educated and public schooled children who do not think or question life and who do not have an opinion on anything.

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Elizabeth On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:02 am

I am intrigued by this article, as I have been a teacher in 3 different scenarios…. public, private, and homeschool. I am a little saddened that private schooling was not even considered as an option. And while I do understand most private schools are religious (which we are so it works nicely), there are non-religious private schools also. And many now have scholarship programs, or voucher programs for those who need/want help financially for those schools.

I personally feel, that each has their positives and negatives.

At the moment I AM a homeschool mother of a 5 year old. I see a great amount of potential for homeschool as far as showing her how to figure things out and being able to do more “in depth” learning and projects. I have a large curiosity about “unschooling”.

That said, I also see nothing wrong with sending her to a more “traditional” setting in a private school, where she can make close friends she would see on a daily basis. And I feel it could be a good thing for her to learn to deal with other authority figures.

Ro On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:54 am

But you didn’t mention sending her to public school. Is that totally out of the question? As one public school teacher to a former public school teacher, I wonder why you don’t consider sending your child to public school.

Cary S. On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:21 am

A great book about unschooling by a great mom, “A Little Way of Homeschooling” by Suzie Andres.

I am very conflicted about this post, and judging from the length of previous comments, others are, too. I admit that I am a 2nd grade public school teacher and somewhat biased on this subject. I work in a Title 1 school where 91% of our students receive free/reduced lunch. We teach everything from severe learning disabilities to gifted and have managed to earn the school grade of an A. I go home nights and weekends worrying about the state of my students’ home lives: Will they eat this weekend? Will they get to sleep somewhere besides their mother’s car? Will their shoes last one more week before falling apart? These are issues that public school teachers face in addition to teaching the child to learn based on his/her needs and interests. In my opinion, we go above and beyond to dedicate our time, money, and emotions to our students that they might not receive at home. In some situations, homeschooling is ideal. But for many of the students in public schools, it is their safe haven, only chance to see appropriate social behavior, and opportunity to learn something a new way. I’d like to suggest you visit a few public school teacher’s blogs to see how we rarely we color inside lines and sit at desks.

ck On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:03 pm

melaniek On Tuesday, July 19 at 7:32 pm

Very well said Emily…

Beth R. On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:57 pm

Emily,
I, too, have worked in inner city public schools and have worried so much about my students’ home lives. I have such respect for so many hard working teachers and feel awful about the burned out teachers giving the hard workers an bad name. I sometimes feel it is an impossible task for even the hardest working, most caring teachers– meeting every child’s needs each day– and that is why I am strongly considering homeschooling my boys (ages 4 and 6). My hat is off to the teachers who give their all to the most difficult and important job.

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NCMom On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:09 am

We are a homeschooling family and I agree with the post completely. Perhaps homeschooling isn’t for everyone, but there is certainly a place for it and you can most definitely nurture your children in ways that public school cannot. We don’t teach to the test, we teach for life. Too often in the classroom setting there isn’t the freedom to let a child mature, grow and become their own person. (good for you, if your school experience or classroom isn’t/wasn’t this way) Thankfully, many have come to realize that one size does not fit all.

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Lesley On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:32 am

This is a fantastic read. Thanks! I believe that our public school system has devolved into something ugly. It seems to exist for two reason: babysitting and standardized testing. Children are no longer taught how to think and solve problems. Creativity is allowed only in art class – if there even is an art class – rather than being used for exploring science, math, literature and other concepts. This is why we send our children to a private school. There, students are expected to submit to some rote learning techniques, yes. But they also experience a great deal more hands-on learning, teamwork, creative problem solving, and more.

I appreciate that some teachers who commented above said things like, “Some teachers like me do great things.” Unfortunately, in public schools, those have become the exception rather than the rule. At a private school, if I don’t like the teacher’s methods, I am a customer whose concerns are taken seriously.

Dee Dee On Wednesday, July 20 at 12:57 am

I don’t believe that traditional private schools are necessarily better than traditional public schools. My middle son attended a private school until we brought him home to learn. That school was more laid back in regards to learning to read, something my son was not proficient in until late 1st grade. He was far behind in math compared to his public school age mates, but at the top of his class at the private school. He had taken part in a stellar art program at the private school, where they also offered Spanish classes and a twice a week music program. Neither the public nor the private school offered much in the way of science, an area that fascinated my son.

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FarmGirlJo On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:35 am

Teaching the **love of learning** should be the very first thing taught, and the theme over every day. Do that and you will succeed where schools fail.

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Elizabeth On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:36 am

I’m sorry that your public school experiences with your son have led you to come away with the idea that a “fairly uncreative learning experience that is often the only method that today’s teachers can provide” is the norm in today’s classrooms. Whatever experience led you to that conclusion must have been very frustrating for you as a parent.

However, I think it’s an awfully unfair depiction of what goes on in many classrooms, despite overcrowding and low funding. I’m a teacher — I teach middle grade students and I teach in an inclusion classroom where many of my students have learning difficulties. Heck, just being ELEVEN is enough of a learning difficulty for just about any student. And, I would never ever characterize my classroom as you have characterized many classrooms. Rote learning and regurgitation of facts play a very small part in the overall picture of what we do. We explore, we learn from and with each other, we do projects and small group lessons, we use a variety of learning and teaching methods…I could go on. And, honestly? So do the majority of my colleagues. My school is not a paragon of virtues, but it’s full of teachers who really care about their kids and how they learn — and we are a 60% free/reduced lunch school in a rural area with three housing projects feeding into our school.

I think anytime you tarnish anything with one big brush, you’re not doing it justice. And, this article does not treat me, my colleagues and public schools fairly, in my opinion.

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MLE On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:37 am

“Then the Atlanta Public Schools had a huge scandal where hundreds of teachers were discovered to have doctored standardized tests of thousands of students, perhaps for what they thought was in order to keep their jobs. One of the many horrible results of the “No Child Left Behind” law.”

Since this line was injected into an otherwise apolitical discussion of homeschooling, I will provide a little background. These Atlanta teachers held “changing parties” where they got together at someone’s house and erased incorrect answers over drinks. One teacher stole the test answer books, sliced them open with a razor blade, and resealed them using a lighter. This confident group of cheating teachers called themselves “The Chosen.”

These were not the actions of an innocent group of teachers afraid of losing their jobs and ending up on the streets. These were the actions of arrogant people who believed they would never get caught, despite the extraordinary academic gains of their students who traditionally performed poorly. They believed they could keep their sweet gigs as classroom-based babysitters, all the while fooling the parents, the district, the state, and finally the nation.

These teachers were willing to put out vast amounts of effort to change their students’ wrong answers into correct answers because they believed that would be easier than actually doing their jobs and helping these students meet an attainable and reasonable academic goal for their age. These students were performing abysmally prior to the NCLB law, and they continued performing abysmally after the NCLB law. Their teachers were failing to do their jobs prior to the NCLB law, and they were failing to do their jobs after the NCLB law.

The only thing that changed as a result of NCLB was that the perfidy of this gang of teachers was exposed to daylight, and those responsible will be fired. They will be run out of classrooms where they have been protected under the best job security rules in the nation, happily doing uninterrupted and unquestioned harm to children for decades. If that is the “horrible” result of NCLB, then I thank God for it.

Amanda On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:58 pm

Just curious, how do you know all of this? Do you work in Atlanta? I’m in TN so I don’t have any idea what actually happened, but in our state there are no “answer books” for the test. Why on Earth would you need them? You don’t grade them, you send them into the state to be graded. I mean, sure a teacher could change answers because he or she should know what the correct answers are if he or she teaches that subject. But, that part about slicing open the answer books and sealing them back with a lighter just struck me as odd.

Laura On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:02 pm

Amanda, that information was revealed as part of an investigation that was done by the governor’s office and published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. If you visit ajc.com you’ll find quite revealing information in those reports. It’s sad/infuriating, but true.

I was thinking a lot about elementary school this past week. Some Facebook friends (from as far away as The Netherlands) and I were remembering second grade and our wonderful teacher Mrs. Jeanne Woodward. The lady who taught us about the wonders of the solar system for science (and we discovered we all always park for a TV show about planets and stars), showed us basic economics by performing a play about settlers and Native Americans exchanging corn for meat. Taught us about Washington and Lincoln while having us draw stories and make plaster busts of the Presidents that many of still have. The excitement in her voice when she read aloud to us in reading groups. How she taught us to write in cursive and stay in our seats, meet deadlines and never be tardy. A great teacher whether at home or in a school can combine intellectual freedom & growth and discipline. And we did a bang up job on our Iowa Test of Basic Skills, too. 40 years later I can remember every detail of that year. But shifting to the author’s blog post – painting public education and schools with a giant negative brush is just the same as everyone painting all homeschoolers as religioius nuts hanging out in a bunker. I have noticed that several of the homeschooled people I’ve worked with do have a little trouble with deadlines. Sometimes you do need to color inside the lines and a specific thing needs to be done at a specific time. Does that mean homeschooling destroys any hope of personal discipline?

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Jessica On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:44 am

A teacher who nurtures creativity is a wonderful thing, no matter whether it’s at home or in a school. I think a lot of it comes down to ego and confidence. I had one professor who knew the material backwards, forwards, and upside down, so he had nothing to prove. When someone suggested an alternate approach, he would tell us whether it was fully equivalent to his method, or, if not, where they differed. When we gave a wildly wrong answer, he would sort of chuckle good naturedly and then take it apart on its merits. This was a learning experience that I think I’ll remember forever. If I ever teach anything, I hope to be half as good. A really successful student has to learn to adapt to the teacher. Some teachers are young, nervous, insecure, etc. You suffer through those for a chance at learning from the ones who really resonate with you. Similarly, homeschool parents have strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes I see kids with poor logic and writing skills, and feel sad and disgusted that they were deprived of a real education. Sometimes I see those ‘Christian education programs’ and wonder if they’re more about brainwashing than learning. Other times, you can see that the kid benefited enormously. Homeschooling offers the flexibility to slow down and learn things properly when needed, rather than moving at the pace of the class and never really learning some things, and also to go into depth in stronger areas, advancing well past the proscribed material for that age group.

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Kimberly On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:51 am

I think the use of the word “disobedience” in this article was to mimic the idea of “civil disobedience.” Most people equate civil disobedience with Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights Movement. In this context, respectful disagreement of authority – without violence – is encouraged to reach equality for all. I think the author used disobedience in this article to show that a child who is creative and asks questions should be encouraged as long as they still respect their authority figures.

In this way, I think disobedience does have a positive connotation.

Also, I was one of those children who asked a million questions a day and gladly researched things I thought were interesting. I was lucky to have parents who fostered this love of learning and an excellent public school system that redirected my energy into appropriate areas.

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Cathey On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:54 am

Great comments and I look forward to reading the entire article mentioned. My son was only 24 and had achieved a college degree when he told me that “schools don’t teach kids to think!” He was outraged and at that moment I understood better why he seemed to be always bucking the system at our high school – actually a good high school in many ways. But many of the teachers only taught how to score well on a test (again, No Child Left Behind) and not how to look at the question from several sides and explore what the answers might be and what the ramifications of those answers also might be.

I would not have been equipped to home school him (even though I have a college degree) but I should have done a better job – he has learned how to learn (he reads EVERYTHING and is digging his way though the classics that were never taught in English/Literature) and how to think critically – no thanks to even a relatively good education system.

I am gonna wade in here. I have 5 children from 30 on down to 7. We have homeschooled, public schooled and basically private schooled. I think the answer here can’t be an overall wash. Our youngest is in a magnet school..which is amazing..from the teachers right down to the curriculum and the tendency to let kiddos be creative. They have fostered the very creative mind of my son..now 12. The teachers..amazing!
Last year he moved to the middle school..and am disappointed and wanting to offer him alternatives. The economy makes it impossible for me to homeschool this fall..thought I would be. He is loosing ground and the lack of intellectual stimulation is showing in his grades and his interest. There are wonderful schools out there..and some..not so much.

The second part of the puzzle here is the teachers…as one I feel like I can say..and having been a parent for 30 years….there are amazing, wonderful, beyond dedicated teachers out there. They are being crushed by test and requirements and burned out by so many factors. Then, there are the teachers that should never have been teachers..who drag down the children along with themesleves. Heartbreaking really. I have spent many a school year dealing with a teacher who has no patience for a creative child. No training…or interest in learning how to work with them effectively.

The last and most important part…the child. I think some children are suited to structure and if the teachers are good..very happy and grow like little flowers in a good public school setting. Then there are kiddos..who need a more flexible, creative way to grow.
I guess what I am saying is this…you have to look at so many things here..the school the teachers, the student. I don’t think it is fair to any of them to just say that in general public schools kill creativity and intellectual growth. You have to look at what is happening with your individual child.
Wow that was a novel…I guess I feel a bit of passion about this one. Wonderful post…great debate! Thank you for sharing this!!
Sarah

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Tara On Tuesday, July 19 at 8:59 am

Does school squash intellectual growth? I suppose in some situations it does. But I also think that one of the byproducts of that scenario is that frequently, children learn to learn in less than ideal circumstances and that is not necessarily a bad thing. My son had a teacher who, by herself, certainly tried but her ability was not up to the classroom situation she found herself in – 24 students in the class, 20 of them boys, six of them with learning/behavioural diagnoses. It was a stacked deck to be sure. And my son did learn – although his academics were not wonderful that year, all of his teachers commented on his personal and social skills – his ability to negotiate, to solve problems, to mediate, to find a way forward through compromise. Did his academics suffer compared to some of the ‘good’ students? Yes they did. He was behind when he left Grade 3 and needed remedial work through the summer to bring him up to par. However, I would argue that what he gained in social skills – tools and resources and practices that have wide application for the rest of his life and are fundamental to further success outside of school (where he’ll be for most of his life) – more than made up for some below-average grades. After all, grades are probably the least reflective of learning success – well, that’s my opinion anyway.

If school were only about grades, I would tell you that that Grade 3 year was an utter failure. But school is NOT only about grades. School is about learning how to learn – learning how to live with people and their opinions, gifts and baggage – and not all of it will be ideal. If a child can learn resilience in school as part of the panoply of ‘credits’ earned, I would say that that child is well situated for success. A child who doesn’t learn to deal with the adversity and obstacles that other people can put in their path is a child who is not well-equipped and will struggle. Now I’m not advocating a sink-or-swim approach and every parent must decide what they’re comfortable with and make wise choices for their family. While I was happy to sacrifice Grade 3 academics for real-world success, not everyone may be and that’s okay. You choose what’s best for you. But this is my take on the situation – in the long-term approach to life, success as defined by a county report card is probably not fundamental. A facility with relationships is. Therefore, Grade 3 was a success even if we didn’t see a single A or B at the end of the year.

I had a good public school experience, and my (much) younger sister had a good homeschool experience. In both cases, it was because our parents taught us to enjoy creative learning.
Thanks for the link – I didn’t feel like the original article was a homeschool vs. public school debate at all. It was more a linear learning vs. creative learning debate.
I’ve been troubled by my younger daughter, who is extremely verbal, but who is less compliant than her older siblings, and who won’t sit to learn like they do. The article made ME look at this “problem” in a more creative light. Good for me, good for her.

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Kimberly On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:06 am

I would also like to point out that letting a child research on their own and craft their own curriculum would only work with certain personality types. Not every child (or adult) is a self motivated individual by nature.

A positive aspect of public school is that the instructors have to teach everybody. Children with disabilities, children with difficult home lives, children living below the poverty line, children from all walks of life get an education in America. That education is not perfect, not by any stretch of the imagination. However, I do not think homeschooling parents consider the challenge that public school teachers face. Homeschooling parents do not have to try to teach a child who never spoke English or did not eat breakfast that morning or dinner the night before.

Public education is a demanding profession. Even with it’s faults, everybody is better off in America with the availability of public education because it allows some children an education when they otherwise would have had none.

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Deanne On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:06 am

“Then the Atlanta Public Schools had a huge scandal where hundreds of teachers were discovered to have doctored standardized tests of thousands of students, perhaps for what they thought was in order to keep their jobs. One of the many horrible results of the “No Child Left Behind” law.”

I don’t know about anyone else, but this statement bothers me. Fond or not of NCLB, saying that it caused professionals to doctor results is a bit absurd. Those teachers chose to be dishonest in order to gain personally, the law didn’t force them to. There are thousands of other teachers who have not behaved so. The statement passes blame from grown adults who know they did wrong to a piece of legislation that did not dictate such actions.

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Miss Melis On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:06 am

Oh MY! This IS a “homeschooling” blog folks and as much as you may not agree with the author’s stand, it’s her opinion and what she believes. I am a homeschooler, and as well as the author, not a public-school-hater. I may not like some of the methods and results of public school, but I also don’t think homeschooling is for everyone. That being said, I don’t seek out information, resources and blogs about public school. If you don’t want to read about homeschooling experiences and information, don’t read this section of the blog and then rail the author for her opinion. Ultimately each of us have to do what we feel is best for our kids and pursue it with passion. I think the author is doing this and so does every homeschooler I know. I fail to have sympathy for people who think the author is creating “stereotypes” about public school. Us homeschoolers live in a sea of stereotypes that are simply not true. No one is trying to tell you you’re a bad parent for public schooling your kids, so no need to get so defensive!

Jeanette On Wednesday, July 20 at 7:32 am

First let me say that I appreciate you discussing something of a “provacative” nature in a very open forum. This is how we adults continue to learn

I am pursuing a teaching career. I am a business professional who is looking to further my education with a Masters in Education. I personally think that our Public Educational system is damaged and need repair.

I give tons of kudo’s to you wonderful homeschooling parents. I think it takes a unique Mother, Father, Grandmother, Aunt, etc. etc. to be able to educate their children. I know I personally don’t have the patience for it. I enjoy working outside the home and it would probably be more harm for me to educate my children than it would for them to brave the public school system. That does not mean that I am not actively involved in their education. I have a 12 year old that is very Academic. Good grades, excellent behavior. She is a tad bit lazy and does not have that spark yet to “educate herself”. My youngest is very precocious. She is well bahaved at school but she definately beats to the tune of her own drum. They both learn differently. I realize this as their parent. This is why I am the best advocate for their educations.

I personally believe that the troubles with the Public Education system stem from the parental involvement. A teacher can only be responsible for so much in the short time that they are instructing our children. We, as parents, are responsible to continue to educate them every moment that we can.

All too often I see parents just treat the educational system as a babysitting service. I saw this in the private school sector as well. These parents were paying good money to send their kids to school and doing nothing with their education their selves.

I think the article has some merit and it has made us think. I only hope that I can take this new knowledge and apply it as I enter the system and work to make it a little better one student at a time.

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Elizabeth On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:16 am

As a public school teacher, I have to weigh in on this one. So much of the school experience depends on your child’s individual classroom. During the past ten years, I’ve taught in a variety of public, private, and charter school settings, and teachers’ responses to students’ creativity or outside-the-box thinking varies widely. Rote memorization, while frequently used to teach basic concepts such as multiplication tables and phonics, is rarely used in middle and high schools, at least in my experience. Most teachers figure out pretty quickly that sitting quietly and taking notes is not the most effective way of learning for the majority of students, and the quality educators I know strive to make room for creative, higher-level thinking skills and experiential learning.

Standardized testing has made it more difficult, with its focus on facts and regurgitating information, but I think the classroom as a place of silent, stifling memorization has given way to a much more dynamic, flexible atmosphere. At least, I hope so!

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barbara On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:21 am

I’m not convinced that the public school does all of the teaching for the students that attend public school. I went to public school and a state college. My parents allowed us to learn/explore at home and took us to many places (clarification: never expensive, never abroad, but new to us!) and we saw how my parents learned things as we went places together (even fishing in a local watering hole). I did the same with my children (sent them to public school for what it offered and add lots of family time/experiences).

I still think children can benefit from both: public school and lots of attention at home

Just like you learn that certain places require certain behavior, public school requires certain behavior. Going to the grocery store, going to church, going to an art museum…they are not crushing our ability to learn/explore. They teach us how to act in public.

Everything was not always smooth for our children (in public school) but I’m not sure schooling them only at home would have been the better route.

Dee Dee On Wednesday, July 20 at 1:37 pm

Barbara, it sounds like both you and your children have wonderful, caring parents. Kudos to your family!

When my older two were in school, there was some homework, but not so much that there was no free time to explore, daydream, and enjoy the company of friends and family. This was true even for my daughter, who was involved in several sports, debate, theater and student government. I have seen a disturbing change in the area where we reside today. I hear early elementary school teachers complaining about being required to assign at least a half hour of homework each night, more in each successive grade level, per school district policy. I know 7th graders who stay awake until midnight or 1 a.m. in order to complete the homework they began immediately upon arrival at home. There are large projects they must complete, assigned at the beginning of Christmas and Spring breaks. They have no time to connect, no time to question, no time to explore.

What a GREAT post! I don’t even have kids yet and I’m filing this away to use when I do. I also read that article about creative disobedience that you referenced, and it was fantastic. Reading it made me realize how lucky I was to be a child who flourished in a traditional classroom, and who had great teachers who didn’t smother my curious spark or discourage me from using my imagination.

GREAT post. I loved the article, as well. I have to say that being in the education field for quite some time I know first-hand just how much damage can be done in the name of “learning”. I do think that homeschooling is an ideal but not always attainable goal. I wish that the public/private schools would embrace more of the discovery aspect, but fear that this could never be possible because of under-funding. If America were really to take a valued interest in the education of our students we might not have to take it into our own hands. I realize that some children will thrive in traditional school settings and that there are some excellent teachers out there however, I am thankful for open debate on this subject as it encourages greater participation in the politics that govern education.

I found my experience to be quite the opposite. I found the rules and restrictions of public school to be excellent for my emotional health. And as for asking questions? I always thought that asking questions made a student an overachiever. I’ve never been discouraged from asking questions, which is how I excelled in all levels of school and learned beyond the low bar that the small public school sets. We didn’t have any advanced placement courses in my school, but I would say it was by asking questions that I learned advanced material in class.

That curiosity was fostered and coveted – and my teachers never complained about having to extrapolate for me when I questioned. The only people who were annoyed were students who didn’t want to be at school in the first place. But I bet secretly, they might have retained some info, so it never bothered me.

Great post! One of the benefits of homeschooling is that we have the freedom to nurture that curiosity. Unfortunately school teachers don’t have the time or the freedom to answer each of those questions in the class time given.

An ideal school doesn’t squash creativity. However, I haven’t seen an ideal school yet.

I went to a very respected private school. I could read when I started kindergarten. I spent the next 13 years reading under my desk, making good grades and bored out of my mind.

My younger brother started the same school in kindergarten and could read anything. He couldn’t read and was labeled dyslexic by first grade. A teacher (one of the top 10 in the USA) used to lock him in the closet because he was hyper. When we did homework together, I sent him to run around the house when he bounced. It worked. You can’t do that in school.
Between Ritalin and the dyslexic label, it took him 2 decades to learn how to learn again. And Ritalin forces kids to sit still. It doesn’t ever teach them to sit still.

At school, I was told I couldn’t draw or paint. I got terrible grades in art – even quit painting for a year because of what the teachers said about my artwork. Then I saw their work I was selling my artwork by the time I was in high school. And surprise, they wanted me in their special art program. I said no thanks.
I did the same thing in college, read in the back of the room, made good grades, took as many extra classes and majors as I was allowed to. Bored out of my mind even with 3 majors and several minors. Again I said no thanks to the art programs…

I don’t know about stifling creativity but school certainly destroys the ability and desire to learn. Also keep in mind that USA schools score pitifully on international tests. We have one of the worst school systems in the “developed” world. That includes everything from learning to safety.

I’ve been a full time working fine artist since I got out of college. I taught myself.
My son is 3 and learning to read very well.

Mrs. C On Tuesday, July 19 at 2:56 pm

I would like to point out that in the United States, ALL students are tested. In most (if not all) of the other contries that “out-do” us on standardized tests, it is generally only the top 5-10% of students who are tested. The rest go to maritime schools, trade schools, etc.

Furthermore, standardized tests are not the “be-all & end-all” way to measure student learning and knowledge.

The teacher and the system are the only educational reasons to go to school. If you get a good teacher who knows well the art and science of teaching, then the outcome will likely be better than homeschooling. Many parents don’t know how to teach and don’t know the material (same complaint can be made of teachers too :). I suspect the parents who want to home school are self-selecting because they feel that they do know and can teach. If, as a parent, you feel that you can beat the system then it’s a good choice to homeschool.

My school experience really doesn’t reflect your characterization. I was the “good” kid, the “smart” kid, and I was the inquisitive type. I have never been good at memorization. What I am good at is understanding things. I am interested in how things work. My teachers were very encouraging because it was clear that I was *interested* in learning. I think that the real problem kids were the type who refused to like a book simply because it was required reading. While I am sure that this may depend on the school, my point is that it isn’t “school” that’s the problem. I would tend to guess that it has something to do with class sizes. When we stuff too many kids in one classroom, the lesson must be more of a lecture, whether the teacher likes it or not.

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Kacey On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:39 am

I was homeschooled on and off as station (depending on what the public schools were liked where my father was stationed) and I always felt diminished, held back, and generally ignored in a public school environment. I, too, went to public school with a love of learning and had it busy-worked out of me. Thankfully having the occasional homeschool year helped restore some of the creativity and interest that public school tried so hard to discourage. My son is 3 and we’ve been homeschooling informally for a year and plan on starting a more organized pre-k curriculum in September. He inherited my love of books and natural curiosity and I love nurturing those tendencies. While kids his age are learning to line up and sit in a circle, we went to the tidepools and made a bakeable clay model of what we saw there. He’s suddenly shown an interest in sign language so we’re learning it together.

Basically (although he is learning his ABC’s and 123′s as well) my main goal is always to teach him how to learn things on his own and to encourage his love of the process and that, for all their good intentions, is something a teacher with 25+ students simply does not have time to do.

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Beth C. On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:40 am

I think, as with anything else in life, it just depends. I am a firm homeschooling advocate…but I do not homeschool. We did for a couple of years, but then we got very blessed with an incredible charter school that our son was able to get into. It’s an environmental school, so everything is done around a science focus – including field day Fridays, where they spend the entire day out in the government greenspace that back to the school. They are very child-driven, while maintaining a focus on the requirements. Testing is not emphasized (though *is* required by the state – even for homeschoolers), and parents are encouraged to be very active within the school and at home. There are very minimal amounts of homework (unlike the traditional schools), because they cover it during the day – class sizes are capped at 21. I almost feel like my kids are getting the benefit of a “regular” school while maintaining an almost homeschool-like environment.

However, I realize not all parents are so lucky, and I can completely understand where many would feel that the traditional schools may not work for their children. There are many incredible teachers out there, but often they are hamstrung by lack of funding, class sizes that have swollen out of control, and ridiculous bureaucratic rules.

As for Lyndsay who mentioned “that doesn’t change that there’s a reason why homeschooled kids are often stereotyped as unsocialized, unprepared for higher education, or just plain “weird.”, that reason is because general society looks down on anyone who does things differently. Period. From elementary school all the way through adulthood, people make fun of others who they see as “different” – and homeschooling, for the longest time, certainly fit that category. And while there are bad apples in every homeschooling barrel, that certainly fits for standard schooling as well – there are bad teachers, bad administrators and bad schools. If there weren’t, homeschooling wouldn’t be growing by leaps and bounds as it is.

It is a provocative article, but what better way to get people to actually think? To use open their minds, possibly broaden their horizons, and learn about other ways and methods? Bravo to you for writing it, and please don’t feel like you’re “isolating your readership” – there will always be people willing to be challenged and to learn (even if they continue to disagree) from those challenges.

I believe that’s what they call “Learning”

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Hope On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:40 am

What is important is that we have the option to homeschool if the public school system does not meet an individual child’s needs. There is no doubt that public schools are a lifesaver for many children whose parents are not able to adequately provide intellectual, social, and even physical caretaking. Some children, however, are damaged by being in a public school environment. This is usually no fault of the school or the teachers — no one system can be the best for every person. I was told that my (very smart) oldest son would be placed in “special” classes because of his lack of fine motor skills and diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder. He would have been crushed. I kept him home and worked with him on overcoming his disadvantages. He entered public school in 9th grade (by his own choice) and 3 years later has a 4.0 average and fits in just fine with his peers. I know that I saved this child.

My younger two children, given the option, decided to be homeschooled as well. I am still homeschooling them, and they have far more friends and participate in many more activities than I ever did in my public school years. And they are happy, not afraid not be themselves, and interested in a wide variety of intellectual pursuits. These two would do fine in either a public school or homeschool setting, but I’m glad we have the choice. They will have the rest of their lives to be in structured settings, with college and work. Why not have freedom in childhood?

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Melissa On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:41 am

The title of this blog poses a question that can only be answered one way. Every child is different, with different needs and different responses. No single method is “best”. No single method is problematic. Only when we become the first teacher, the one who understands what makes our child tick, and laugh, and grow, can we make a choice that best suits him. There are times when the public school system fails, and times when homeschoolers fail. The beauty is, many of us are blessed with different options. My heart goes out to the mothers out there who want the best for their children, but because of circumstances beyond their immediate control, they have only one option. The best they can do is make the time they are able to spend with their children, valuable, encouraging, and inspiring.

Thank you for this discussion! I have a three year until this year I was certain I would homeschool until I found a Waldorf School in our area. It seems like it will be a good fit for her at this time. The principles are based on creative play with natural materials with traditional educational pressures of public education. We will see how it goes.

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carkye On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:00 am

First, thank you for your post. I found it an interesting topic and one to spark my thought process as I continue to do the right thing for my son. That is how I took it, as food for thought for your individual childs needs, along with some personal experience thrown in. I find it interesting how educators and public school families are reading a homeschooling post and feel attacked enough to scold you. This last school year I had to explore all the options possible for my son. He has attended private school since pre-k. Sadly enough, even in private where you are paying for lower class size and more individual attention, a learning disorder still went undiagnosed and undiscussed. The school had lost many teachers the prior years and the ones that were left were all trying to protect their jobs. My son was maintaining honor roll status while struggling daily to keep up with the class. His anxiety and tension was increasing with each passing month. Last year we finally had a teacher that is a shining example to her calling, speak up about what he was struggling with in her classes. This lead to the dreaded full day educational testing evaluation. After receiving the results, my husband and I explored the ideas of homeschool, public and a totally different type of private that specializes in his special need. We ended up going with the private for one reason and one reason only, it was what was in my child’s best interest at this time of our lives. I’m so glad that you have found a choice like that for your son and hope that like me you continue to seek that first and re-examine decisions when you come across articles like this that challenge your thought process.

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Kate On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:10 am

To me, it is a question of the particular parent or teacher. I know of many home schooled children who flourish with parents who are open minded, creative, and who encourage learning. I know of many schooled children who flourish under teachers who go out of their way to encourage creative thinking, problem solving, and learning. I know of many home schooled children who are squashed by their parent’s world view and religiosity. I know of many schooled children who are squashed by teachers or schools more concerned with discipline and test scores than learning.

Situations where children are encouraged to be creative, take risks, be open-minded and make discoveries about who they are and this world are optimal. Those situations where children are taught religious dogma that may be narrow minded, restrictions, and how to obey are the true failures.

Sandy On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:36 am

Thank you, Kate! As you say, it all depends on the individual case. The article and blog post illustrate specifics that can’t be applied to every environment or person.

Shelley On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:46 am

And there you go! Well said. Thus, the freedom to choose.

kelly On Tuesday, July 19 at 2:49 pm

I referenced this in my comment #84 below (got the # wrong – sorry). This is way better than I said it but I agree. I always say that I will defend either camp – home or public school -but for some reason the way this article was interpreted really seemed bias. The bottom line is that it does always depend on the individual case.

I like this idea from the article: “Teaching kids to ask questions and think about problems before receiving the solution encourages more non-linear, divergent and creative thinking, to produce better innovators, problem-solvers, and problem-finders.”
I met a teacher recently who does not give her kids the answers to their questions. They ask questions and she says, “let’s research that” and then they do. this is such a great way for kids to learn to explore, solve problems, and know that it’s ok to question.
Thanks for sharing this!

Erica Connell On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:15 am

What a great article and post, thank you for sharing it! I find it difficult to discuss with many people the decision making process we are going through to choose the right kind of school for our children. I’ve found a prevailent attitude that seems to say “public school was good enough for me/you/our kids/me to work at, therefore it is good enough for your kids”, as if my decision to home school or private school my children is a reflection on whomever I’m speaking with! This is so odd to me. And I don’t have anything against those who teach. But I know, from them, that teaching is difficult and the conditions in which they are expected to teach, and in which children are expected to learn simply don’t fit everyone. Obviously many children do just fine, or even excell in classes of 20 – 30 kids, and many teachers excell in this model as well. In California we have a “First 5″ program run by the state that insists and encourages that a child’s parent is their first and prehaps most influential teacher (esp. in the early years). I couldn’t agree more, and yet this message is immediatly undercut once kids get to “school age”; the message then is “we know best for your kids; trust us implicitly”. I’ve finally realized that my challenge with buying-in to this thinking is that I wholeheartedly agree that TIME is the biggest asset with which we can impact our children. And there is simply not enough individual time available to students in large classes, and its way too easy for children to get lost in the crowd. I was fortunate to attend private school in the early years… not because it was ‘private’, but because the classes were tiny. There were 5 of us in my graduating 8th grade class. Needless to say, there was plenty of time in a school day for the needs (special and otherwise) of the students to be met. It was a structured program, but the built-in flexibility of time was an important factor to everyone’s learning.
Thanks for taking comments on this post!

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zaira On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:15 am

With three children in California public schools, I can say with confidence that the teachers of today are more progressive than this article makes them out to be. They are highly educated and have the ability to respond effectively in many different circumstances. They DO NOT sit inside all day, making their students memorize the alphabet. They DO NOT force children to color inside the lines. They even allow children to stand at their desks (gasp) if that helps the child to learn more effectively. Creative learning is encouraged more often than not. Even teachers that have been teaching for many, many years further their education so that they can adapt to this ever-changing, demanding job.

Should we just stick our children on a deserted island, allow them to smear pig blood on their faces, and tell them to solve their problems?

It may be interesting for you to know that as a public school teacher I have run into the problem of my students’ creativity being stifled…except from the opposite source, their own parents. Parents often have the expectation that their child’s education will be identical to their own, with no allowance for progress in pedagogy in the time since they were in school. For example, when they find out that we no longer teach multiplication by rote memorization, they struggle to understand the problem solving methods their children are using and will often allow students to set aside the methods we are teaching (which involve critical thinking and contextual problem solving) and simply memorize the facts. Or, when students are dressing up as historical figures and giving a speech as that person, parents want to know why we are playing “dress up pretend” in the fifth grade. They would rather them write a traditional biographical report. It can be very frustrating.

Regardless of the route you choose for your child’s education, it is most important for you to function as his/her advocate. If public school is your choice, then it is essential to work in partnership with the teachers. Only then will your child make the most of their educational opportunities.

Julie B On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:33 pm

Stacy, as a fellow teacher, I totally agree. In fact, I was about to make the same point. Whenever I assign these type of ‘out-side of the box’ lesson, I am often met with conflict from parents and students. Many seem parents want worksheets, textwork, multiple choice tests, and an A for their child.

Nookncranny On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:34 pm

Amen and amen!! I also saw many parents that expected certain behaviors at school, such as rote memorization….problem-solving and critical thinking skills were often mocked or looked down upon. The parents laughed and said they were just “guessing”. I keep thinking it all comes down to your interactions with each child, be you an aunt, teacher, friend, etc. It is our responsibility to teach children many, many things. Public school teaches some of them, being at home teaches others…I am trying to successfully homeschool AND publicly educate my children at the same time. My eldest daughter blossomed under her first grade teacher, which was a beautiful thing. My second child, however, I believe will need help from me. Every child is different, every parent is different, every YEAR is different. This is an ongoing, individual decision, and I’m grateful that PW points us in the direction of informative articles and blogs. THANKS, PW!

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Marie On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:28 am

Yes. Yes! YES!

Sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees. Thank you for this. Both of my children are adults now, and your post, and the linked article, have helped me to put it all in place. Oh do I wish I knew then what I know now…

I want to make it clear that the school my children went to, K-6, was amazing. We were blessed because our school was a magnet for the best teachers in the district and our principal was open to innovation.

School was a wonderful experience for my daughter and she excelled.

School was a tortuous experience for my son, who was labeled Troubled, Defiant, Disruptive, Incorrigible and Learning Disabled. The Experts recommended drugging him and flat out told me I was a Bad Mother for not heeding their advice.

Cut to the chase, after almost flunking out of high school – not because he was failing tests but because he wasn’t handing in his homework – he agreed to try AP classes in his senior year, those offered to the Brainiacs on track for university. He thrived, mostly because of the independent learning demanded of each student due to the depth and pace of the material taught. My Learning Disabled son earned a 4.0 in his Senior year and that brought his GPA up enough to be accepted into university… where he has struggled due to the rote, stifling way the classes are taught.

So, while some may thrive in conventional schools, not every child is suited to that environment. Beware when The Experts make recommendations. Take what they say and weigh it with what you ‘know’. And then make the decision that is best for your child, not best for The Experts.

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Leann On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:35 am

This article was very interesting. I worked in higher education with what were considered ADA students from area schools. I also have a little personal experience with the subject. My cousin was one of these students that was sent to my office. At a very young age she struggled with school. They promptly sent her to the special education program. Years after this she was diagnosed with dyslexia. At this point she was developmentally behind the other students because this particular school used the special ed program to put the students they didn’t want to deal with out of the way. My cousin graduated with extremely low marks and registered in the remedial classes at the University that I was employed with. The remedial program there was similar to the special education program at her school. These were the students they did not expect to make it. The teachers were under-educated and under-experienced. My poor cousin dropped out last year due to her low gpa. I am not saying that public school is all to blame for her issues, but I personally believe that the public school ostracizing her led to other developmental issues. This happened to a person just because her teachers didn’t pay close enough attention to realize that a student could not understand her written assignments. This was a little off topic, but I noticed similar circumstances with many of the students that I met with.
As far as homeschool versus public school. In my time as the recruiter I enrolled several students that completed their studies through homeschooling. These students stood out to me. There was one student that just amazed me on a daily basis. She was extremely intelligent and so gifted artistically. I first met her when I spoke at her GED graduation ceremony. She applied to our Ambassador program and was promptly accepted. It was obvious that she wasn’t like other students. She always marched to her own beat and didn’t feel the need to comply to the majority opinion of students. I did see students that came from public schools that were similar, but many of them did not show the same level of intelligence, creativity, and discipline. Not to mention that homeschooled students seem to have more manors and respect for others. This girl is just an example of the homeschool students I met with. The others were very similar.
The downside to completing a homeschooling program is that there are often fewer scholarship opportunities for college and sometimes a lack of information about higher education.
I personally commend the people that homeschool. With proper teaching and social interactions the results are encouraging.

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Birgitte On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:35 am

I agree with the article you linked to, school DOES squash your individuality and creativity. It happened to me. If you are someone who is a bit unusual or prefer finding your own way, then yes, homeschooling is the way to go. I wish it had been an option for me growing up.

Leann On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:58 am

I feel the same Birgitte. I had so many personal bad experiences with public school that I could right an entire book…Diary of an Awkward Kid? I went to a smaller school in the country. I graduated with 20 others. School often felt like more of a social experiment than anything. I did great in school until third grade when I needed glasses and didn’t know it. I complained of headaches on a daily basis, so my teacher made me sit in the corner in front of the class. I received my first B that year. In high school I filled my schedule up with as many nontraditional classes as I could. I excelled in graphic design, agriculture, EAST, and home economics. See a pattern there? I graduated with a 3.6 GPA and with honors. I went on to receive scholarships and attend and graduate collage. I just felt creatively stunted every day from school to college. I can remember being accused of cheating in my Business Calculus class because I solved the problem in a different way than the instructor. I retook that dang class with a different instructor and turned that D into an A. I was always better at taking the materials home and teaching myself than in a classroom environment.
I would love to homeschool when I have children. I know many homeschooled people that were given the opportunity to be creative and expressive. That combined with socialization and a challenging curriculum results in some really amazing people.

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VV On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:36 am

As a former teacher, whether we agree with the testing or not, it not the fault of no child left behind….with large groups of students there must be some way to measure students learning. Parents demand some type of gauge. The entire blame must but put on the teachers….do not stoop to give them an out for their actions. These teachers were not pushed to cheat…I shudder at the thought of someone with that lack of integrity teaching my child..ever!
These “professionals” are responsible for forming your children and school hours amount to the majority of their day….this is an absolute outrage!

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Julie On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:45 am

Kristen puts forth a valid concern. As a classroom teacher, I constantly struggle between my own constructivist pedagogy regarding the way we learn versus that of which administration, both at the district and state levels, enforce upon educators. I honestly believe that learning can be fun; however, not the way that many teachers, myself now included, teach. I also believe that many of the behavior problems we see in the classroom are a result of kids who are not actively engaged in what they are learning. Why? Because constant rote memorization is not only boring, but often ineffective in the long-term. Each academic year, I am encouraged to ‘weed-out’ lesson plans and activities that promote critical thinking in favor of textbook work that will “prepare our students to be successful on the CA state test.” I have been told multiple times that if it’s not on the test, don’t teach it. My job depends on it. And each day I walk into my room, I love my profession a little less. We are truly doing a disservice to our kids. Now, by the time my students get to me in junior high, they’ve been so trained to ‘find the right answer’ that they don’t know HOW to problem solve and become quite flustered when presented with opportunities to so.

Of course I encourage my students to explore alternative reasoning during classroom discussions; however, I believe the level of creativity Kristen is referring to runs much deeper than than saying that there is more than one ‘right’ way of thinking. It is the process involved in formulating these ‘answers.’ In our traditional classroom, often teachers are viewed as the omniscient departers of knowledge, with our students playing the role of the passive chicks waiting to be ‘fed’ what is important. It should then come as no surprise that simply regurgitate what they’ve been told.

And now as parent myself, who everyday is part of this system, I question what is best for my own daughter. Will this very system squash whatever natural desire to learn she may possess? Do I cross my fingers and hope that each school year she gets a teacher willing to buck current pressures and keep her engaged? Do I take a closer look at private schools/Montessori? Or do I simply accept things as they are, remembering that as my daughters greatest teacher I can provide her with authentic learning opportunities at home? Thank you Kristen for articulating some of my own fears.

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MLE On Tuesday, July 19 at 10:51 am

“Then the Atlanta Public Schools had a huge scandal where hundreds of teachers were discovered to have doctored standardized tests of thousands of students, perhaps for what they thought was in order to keep their jobs. One of the many horrible results of the “No Child Left Behind” law.”

Since this line was injected into an otherwise apolitical discussion of homeschooling, I will provide a little background. These Atlanta teachers held “changing parties” where they got together at someone’s house and erased incorrect answers over drinks. One teacher stole the test answer books, sliced them open with a razor blade, and resealed them using a lighter. This confident group of cheating teachers called themselves “The Chosen.”

These were not the actions of an innocent group of teachers afraid of losing their jobs and ending up on the streets. These were the actions of arrogant people who believed they would never get caught, despite the extraordinary academic gains of their students who traditionally performed poorly. They believed they could keep their sweet gigs as classroom-based babysitters, all the while fooling the parents, the district, the state, and finally the nation.

These teachers were willing to put out vast amounts of effort to change their students’ wrong answers into correct answers because they believed that would be easier than actually doing their jobs and helping these students meet an attainable and reasonable academic goal for their age. These students were performing abysmally prior to the NCLB law, and they continued performing abysmally after the NCLB law. Their teachers were failing to do their jobs prior to the NCLB law, and they were failing to do their jobs after the NCLB law.

The only thing that changed as a result of NCLB was that the perfidy of this gang of teachers was exposed to daylight, and those responsible will be fired. They will be run out of classrooms where they have been protected under the best job security rules in the nation, happily doing uninterrupted and unquestioned harm to children for decades. If that is the “horrible” result of NCLB, then I thank God for it.

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MJ On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:04 am

As a personal observation, over many years, there is something that seems to discourage, derail and sometimes even destroy children as learners (or worse). Simply compare and contrast the enthusiasm of a toddler to a 2nd,3rd or 4th grader…..most of the zest is gone, there is no “let me try again” attitude after the 100th fall-down-equivalent, there is no “me do it” attitude, the “why?” questions that peppered every day are few and far between, and I speak in generalizations because of course there are the exceptions, but I am asking you to be observant and ask “what has happened?” along the way in as few as 5 years.

I am not willing to hang this on the public education system alone, but the format seems to be a contributing piece of the puzzle, I do think we as a culture/society need to rally around parents and children, and their teachers, to encourage one another, so that questions keep being asked, the inquisitive nature of a toddler stays stoked, the can-do attitude remains in the forefront of each child’s mind both in and out of the classroom. Imagine the world if the toddler’s zest for learning could stay for life, something needs to change to make that a reality.

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Cary S. On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:16 am

Wow! There is so much I could write on this topic and in response to many of the commentators (and as I write, this there were only 21). I was a public school teacher, my children went to two different Catholic schools (different states) and then we homeschooled. My eldest is gifted (intellectually). As for your question, his intellect was definitely squashed by schooling. (Hindsight – what a wonderful thing – I should have homeschooled him from the beginning.) When I say it was squashed, he wasn’t allowed to move ahead like he needed to. However, at home, he read and read and read. He’s going into his senior year at an extremely tough college and still loves to read and read and read. He was most certainly a happier child being homeschooled. My other three children would have probably done just fine in school, although another of my boys would have been labeled incorrectly, which is not good. Homeschooling is more a way of life rather than the academics of it. I find that I am more of the “teacher” like I would be in school (hard to leave that behind) when it comes to the academics.
Like I said, I could write a lot on this. The bottom line, though, is that parents must be involved. I saw that as a teacher and a parent of children in school and in homeschooling. The students who loved school and thrived were the ones who had parents who were paying attention to their children. I must say that I agree with those who commented that there are great public school teachers out there. There are those who work with the individuality in all the students. That is not an easy task when you have 25 – 35 students in your classrooms. So, please thank your teachers and encourage them if you are sending your children to school. As for my family, homeschooling was the best decision we could have ever made. It made each of my children so very confident in who they are and kept our family close (something I didn’t have growing up and leading “individual” lives as a public school student), and it has afforded our children to learn and live their faith fully. Oh, and socialization, let’s not get started on that. We have to find time for academics we have so many social opportunities. Key is here, as with all children no matter where they are schooled, parents need to be involved, really involved, in socialization, too.
Thanks for bringing up the question and bless you as you raise your children.

Cary

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Julie from Texas On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:21 am

I knew this subject would bring some heated debate. I have been homeschooling for 12 years because the public schools in my area are not acceptable. My goal has always been to not just have my children learn, but to give them a love for learning, which is easier to do at home (in my opinion). I left my career as an RN to stay at home and educate my children. It is a choice I have never regretted.

For those interested, I strongly recommend a book called, “The Harsh Truth About Public Schools” by Bruce Shortt.

As a Christian family, sending our children to a government school for 40 hours per week, where Jesus was not welcome or spoken of, was not an option. To us, our children’s spiritual development is of utmost importance.

ck On Tuesday, July 19 at 6:48 pm

Julie,
Wouldn’t you think that your church and your influence would be sufficient to reinforce your Christian values in your children?

Are you familiar with “WWJD”? I don’t presume to actually know what Jesus would do, but I’ll bet ya the farm that he would support a system with a mixture of children and expect you to do the same.

Gab On Tuesday, July 19 at 9:30 pm

Seriously CK. Do you know anything about homeschool or public school? Public school children are in a room with children the same age as them. There is no mixing of ages. Most of the time, home schoolers are mixed in age with siblings and often have friends with varying ages, learning from one another. As far as Jesus, you’d have to actually pick up a Bible to see where we’re instructed to teach our children and it doesn’t say a government ran public school system. Unless your version is a different than mine.

Kimberly On Wednesday, July 20 at 9:09 am

I think what CK is getting to is that the teachings of Jesus did not indicate that he would want children to interact with only their own race or socioeconomic status. This has nothing to do with the age of the pupils, but their life experience.

Julie — I respect that you and your husband are putting your children on the educational path that you deem best. I am glad we live in a country where this is permitted, even if I do not personally agree with you. As an educated person who is fit to teach children, I am sure you understand that even though “government” school does not fit your teaching goals, there is something to be said for the separation of church and state.

ck On Wednesday, July 20 at 9:59 am

Thanks Kimberly,
As usual you add greatly to the conversation….i.e. “…not age…but their life experience.” and “…separation of church and state.”

Kathy On Wednesday, July 20 at 11:43 pm

In the public school, we weren’t allowed to discuss religion at all. In the Catholic school we celebrated everyone’s holidays; Easter, Rosh Hashanah , Ramadan, Diwali, Winter Solstice, etc. (New Years are easy to remember.) Not being allowed to ask the girl next to me why she’s wearing that scarf, or the boy in the last row about the little hat, isn’t better, and doesn’t teach more about tolerance or diversity. Who’s to say the church one attends isn’t racially and economically diverse?

I fail to understand how separation of church and state equates to separation of church and education. I personally think public schools should teach about all Major religious beliefs in grade school, including atheism and agnosticism, and offer focused classes in high school on Major and Minor religions. I think this would lead toward an increase in tolerance and understanding. At the vary least people would know what those ‘weird holidays’ are on calendars.

Julie from Texas On Thursday, July 21 at 7:39 am

CK, isn’t it great that we live in a free country in which we can make choices about what we thing Jesus would want us to do? I guess that is what we all have the responsibility to do…what we think is best for our own children.
I do support the public school system with my taxes. Unfortunately, because my taxes are going to the public school system, I struggle to pay for the expenses of my own child’s education and health care (my son has Tourette Syndrome and dyslexia). I have contacted the local school for help numerous time to no avail because he is not enrolled, although by law, he is entitled to help because of the taxes we pay. So, I find and pay for my own resources.
“Separation of church and state” does not apply in my homeschool. I have made that choice and thank God, the state cannot interfere with it. Now that is what I like about separation of church and state!

Anne On Thursday, July 21 at 9:47 am

@Gab: different from, not different than. This, and many other grammatical and spelling mistakes in home-schooling posts illustrate why I am so much in favour of sending children to school. There are so many home-school-crazy parents out there who are unable to speak/write properly, and they teach the wrong forms to their children. Do you really think that’s doing those children any favours?

Also, consider the amount of schooling that goes into teacher training courses. If any random parent is capable of home-schooling, why do we bother going to college and university and getting teaching degrees? Why? Sorry, but this article is nothing but bad home-schooling propaganda and ego massage.

Kathy On Thursday, July 21 at 10:40 pm

Anne,
“Also, consider the amount of schooling that goes into teacher training courses. If any random parent is capable of home-schooling, why do we bother going to college and university and getting teaching degrees?”

To me this is the same as asking if any random person is capable of cooking, why do we bother going to college and chef’s school and getting culinary degrees?

It’s a matter of scale. Any professional Chef can create a meal designed for the specific nutritional needs of a single individual quite easily. The struggle is in designing a dish for a large group all at once. Same for teaching.

Have you never learned anything worthwhile from someone without a teaching degree? Have you never eaten something scrumptious created by someone who didn’t graduate Chef’s school?

Additionally, there are quite a few certified teachers out there with horrendous spelling and grammar habits.

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Amanda On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:22 am

Thank you Lindsay, it was exactly what I was feeling when I read the article. I am a college professor and have had a few homeschooled students in my classes. I read the blogs to learn more about that aspect of the earlier education since I was a public school student myself. I am always put off by the comments or blogs that put public school in an “evil” light. I know there are problems in some public schools, but I am sure there are also some problems with homeschooling. Nothing in this world is perfect and putting down other people’s decisions regarding their children as being extremely flawed and wrong is very judgemental.

What I have enjoyed about reading the blogs is learning about homeschooling, it has given me a better understanding of my student’s backgrounds. My husband and I have even discussed the benefits of homeschooling and our options for our baby (no decision yet). However, reading blogs or posts by readers that are highly negative toward public schools is extremely off-putting toward the homeschooling idea.

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Debbie J. On Tuesday, July 19 at 11:46 am

I think a homeshooling parent would be better able to address this issue than one that has only known public or private schooling.

If you have never homeschooled or at least intimately known people who do, you won’t understand the difference between homeschooling and a typical classroom. The difference is huge.

I for one think homeschooling is WAYYY better in EVERY way than the typical classroom. You notice I said typical. Of course some teachers are so good at what they do that they encourage all kinds of creativity and children blossom under them. My parents were teachers like that. My mom managed to do Montessori type teaching in a public school kindergarten even though it was a typical public school, and my dad taught self-paced science including chemical experiments in middle school. Both understood about the different learning styles and included all in their curriculum.

But when you send your kids to public/private school you don’t know what you are getting from year to year. My son is a sr. in high school next year (unfortunately I’ve been unable to homeschool him although I wish I could have) and has had only about 5 teachers like this. The rest were adequate or less than or really bad at their job. Last year he had a special ed math teacher who couldn’t do math. What a waste of my son’s time for that entire year.

Anyway, I agree that homeschooling is generally better than other schooling.

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Dawn On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:03 pm

FYI: I am a public school teacher in a K-8 rural school.

The single most important factor, above teaching methodology, above class size, above anything, is the TEACHER. In other words, the setting (homeschool, public school, private school) isn’t what makes or breaks your child. It’s the person teaching. You can be the world’s most loving and enthusiastic parent, but that doesn’t make you a good teacher. And I could be the world’s most educated teacher, but that doesn’t make me a good teacher either.

Judge a school by its teachers. They make all the difference.

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Debbie J. On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:08 pm

I am 57. School hampered my intellectual growth in one way. School was all about teaching to the middle level and I was bored because I needed more challenging things to do to keep me interested. So I did what I HAD to do to get good enough grades to keep my parents happy and I hated school. I didn’t go to college until I was in my 30′s.

My middle son was the same way in a different school district. School was just boring for him. He hated it and he only stuck it through until graduation for his dad’s sake. His school counselor told me he was smarter than almost everyone there, including teachers and administrators. Even though he was in “accelerated” classes, they only required more paperwork, not more creative work. He used to get into trouble in math class because he could figure out complex problems in his head.

My first son, very intelligent, also ended up hating school. In a different district. He was not challenged and quickly became bored and a trouble maker and gave up on school.

However, I must say that for all of us, we just learned outside of school whatever we were interested in. But while we were there we were squashed.

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Kelly On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:17 pm

Can I propose that sometimes homeschooling limits or hurts intellectual growth? We believe in homeschooling and we did/are homeschooling right now. Our oldest we put into high school after a wonderful home school experience. What wasn’t wonderful, however, was the interaction with others at the home school coop classes. What we saw were parents and children so afraid to talk about or study other religions or ways of thinking. For example, evolution. We are Christians and believe God created the earth but we don’t call people who don’t believe that “stupid” and laugh at how anyone could believe that. There is evidence in nature of an intelligent creation that has “evolved” in some areas – like dolphins. Here are a few more examples from our coop: vegetarians or vegans are “liberals” and all liberals are bad. Also, if our leaders in Government or anywhere don’t believe the same world view than apparently it is okay and even encouraged to slander them and laugh at people who support them. There was such an “us” against “them” attitude. This is all is a fairly “hip” college town.
Our daughter has always had a tender, sweet spirit that doesn’t want to hurt others. She has taught me to always try and see things from the other persons perspective. From the time she was little she always asked “why” to everything and it bugged me that she sometimes wouldn’t just take my word for it. I prayed about it for a long time and then I read the verse in proverbs that “a simple man believes everything he hears”. She is anything but simple and as academics go she was the valedictorian of her huge school, I had teachers tell me what a good job I did with her at home (as if). National Merit, perfect SAT, 30 hrs. of AP credit. She has one of the most coveted scholarships in the US and is now is Botswana for the summer. She is shadowing a Dr. and learning about the way THEY handle public health. This is so her.
Once she was in public school she still questioned everything and this served her well. When you are confronted with light and dark, the light is just so obvious. Our home schooled friends were shocked that we would put her in such a “liberal” environment.
What helped me so much was a comment from the mother of a girl in my daughters church cell group. Their group met at this woman’s house so this woman overheard some of their discussion. With tears in her eyes she said “You will never know the good that your daughter did for that cell group, I believe she taught them to think about what they believe” I have to add that this house at the time had a “Hillary Clinton” sign in the front yard – ohhh so scandalous for most of this home-schooled group.
I know this is slightly off the topic and if I opened a can worms I do not have the energy or time to deal with it.
Kate’s comment #22 above says it more efficiently than I do.

Kimberly On Tuesday, July 19 at 4:09 pm

Thank you so much for this post! It is quite easy to believe in something if nobody ever questions you or poses another viewpoint. It is important to keep constructive criticism or thoughtful discussion in education, regardless of the path of education you choose.

Your daughter sounds like an amazing young women, best of luck to her!

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Waggie On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:29 pm

I am reading a book that is absolutely wonderful. It’s called “Why Gender Matters” by Leonard Sax. The book is not feminist nor sexist. It is simply based on real scientific studies published in science papers. It talks about simple things like how scientifically girls hear better than boys and how the retina of the eye is different in boys and girls and how that effects their daily choices. We are thinking about homeschooling this year with our Kindergartner and after reading this book we are more likely to home school. Public schools do not have the correct methods for teaching. Boys MUST be taught different than girls. They need to be taught the same thing, but in different ways. Neither way is good or bad, but different and for a reason. Please Please Please if you are a parent or teacher regardless if you home school or not, read this book.
** I am not affiliated at all with Leonard Sax nor the publishing company. They have no idea I exist.***

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melaniek On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:47 pm

I just wanted to comment about the comments i saw questioning why someone would read a homeschooling section if they were not homeschooling their own children……

I certainly cannot speak for all, but I find it kind of funny that people assume if you send your child to public (or private) school that all parents just wash their hands of any of the responsibility of teaching their children. I do not believe I am in the minority of parents who likes to supplement my kids public school work with work here at home, and often educational games/ books that were recommended in this section of PW’s website have found a happy place in my home. I firmly believe that it takes a village to raise kids, whether or not your “village” includes homeschooling friends/ co-ops or public and private school resources or a combination of all of the above, are we all just not hoping for the best for our kids? I adore my child’s public school right now, but its early, he had a fantastic kindergarten teacher (who had him doing a research paper by the end of the year that he was SO EXCITED about and I highly doubt I would have ever thought of that as a home-schooling mom…) HOWEVER, I do not rest on my laurels this summer, I am making him do workbooks, summer reading programs and the like, because I want him to go back to school without having a summer backslide….. As a parent I see nothing wrong with reading up on homeschooling ideas and keeping this type of information in my head should the public school stop meeting our needs.

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Kathy K On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:49 pm

It is wonderful that we have education options available to us in the USA. Kids are different. I am pretty sure that the public schools here would not have met my kids’ needs. Thank goodness I had the choice to homeschool. (Private school wasn’t in the budget.) A blanket statement like ‘Public school does not hurt intellectual growth’ may not be true in your particular school district. That’s why it’s great to have choices! When I am asked why I chose to homeschool, my answer is always ‘because it was the best choice for my kids’. I do not put down the local public school, because it works well for some. I would hope that other parents would respect my choice, too. Even though that isn’t always the case, I don’t let it bother me. I am blessed to live in a country where I have the freedom to choose what works for my family.

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Meaghan S. On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:54 pm

I have to say, I am truely blessed by this article. I am only 21 years old and have yet to have any children but this article reminds me so much of my childhood. The first five years of my elementary years were spent at an excellerated, award winning, and very intelectual public school. I remember being the student that neither the teachers, nor students enjoyed being with because I wasn’t the “smart” one or the “good” student like this author described. This school was very much about focusing on the achieving students rather than the struggling students.

The truth is, kids have many ways of learning. Once I hit fifth grade my parents moved me to a different public school who were much more focused on hands-on learning. We would have many of our lessons outdoors “mummifying” chickens as we learned about ancient Egypt. Or baking baklava as we studied Greece. I remember having nights on the field where all of our families were invited during a meteor shower and telescopes were lined up for all of us to see. This is what made my last two years of elementray school the best. I had fun learning.

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Zandermom On Tuesday, July 19 at 12:58 pm

I literally picked up my child and carried him out of public school during his first grade year. It had been a challenge for him and he misbehaved a lot. No support from the school system made it clear that my son would be better off anywhere but there! So I was kind of thrown into homeschooling mid-year. We have never looked back. Very quickly I realized that my son had questions that were beyond a first grade teacher’s lessons. After reading a story (part of our homeschooling curriculum) we would talk about the plot and then look up words he was not familiar with. While reading “Farmer Boy” we looked on the computer and reference books to see the different tools they used on the farm – and then enjoyed Sturbridge Village for 2 days where there were many similarities to the book. This is the way my child learns. In fairness a school teacher has many students and cannot address each question. But the curious mind learns more – and prompts even more questions and investigations – when it is nurtured.

Enjoy your homeschooling! Our kids are so amazing!

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S. Lynn On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:07 pm

Any way you look at this situation, it only makes sense to act on the conviction you feel about the quality of your children’s education. Homeschool away, if that is what you are capable of. I believe your children will blossom, and who doesn’t want that, as a loving parent?

Just please include the lessons on being truthful (it saves a lot of trouble), and on reading comprehension. As such, I comprehend a bit of incomplete understanding and bias against the legislation you reference so facetiously: “One of the many horrible results of the “No Child Left Behind” law.”.

I apologize for not finishing reading your editorial after this sentence, but no matter which side of the educational political fence you graze on, the fallacy of socialized responsibility will never lead anyone to the right thoughts or answers. This bleeds over into motherhood and parenthood today. We are so overcome with worry because the decisions of our children’s education and life experiences are ultimately ours, while they are young, anyway. This inherent knowledge goes against the way we are socialized today to believe that “fault” is never ours, it is always something outside our control, something we were subjected to that causes all failures.

Those teachers were backpedaling and whining and should have taken responsibility for their actions. That does not mean they are responsible for the actions (or inactions) of the children they are trying to teach – I am well aware that teachers today are faced with a nearly impossible task, with quotas and mandates and laws that reward them based on the performance of others. Parents take no responsibility for the education or preparation of their children to fit them to adult life and consequences, and as children, someone else is perceived as having the responsibility to mold their life and character, and this is the fodder teachers are given… I can see how they would turn to desperation. But, it is one of the original fundamentals, the whole “no cheating” in school thing, isn’t it? How about that spinning a web of lies is easy to do, and difficult to extricate yourself from? Are we so far gone from that that we have forgotten these things, that they are not fundamentals anymore but are archaic morals to be shunned in favor of a socialized automation? If it’s not the responsibility of kids to learn, then why would we expect the teachers to claim responsibility for their actions, either?

Education, and for the fatalists among us, life in general, is just going to get worse as responsibility goes the way of the dodo bird.

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Indrani On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:08 pm

I agree with Sara (20). School is not a place where a child goes only read,write and learn.In today’s world children need to know more and more about children from other parts of the world.There are many reasons to support what I mean.Children should know where other students belong,where do they live,what do they eat,what do family ties mean to them,what are their cultural and creative natures and many more.A good school gives it all. Children need to learn to interact with other kids.Schools help parents to undersatnd the world better too specially when their children come home and share their experiences with their parents.
Infact a qualified teacher can actually enhance intellectual growth since he or she is trained to understand the minds of students.
I say this with 34 years of teaching experience.

Susie On Wednesday, July 20 at 1:53 pm

Why? Why do children need to learn about other children’s cultures or beliefs? What is the purpose? Do you go to work and spend a lot of time dealing with your coworkers beliefs and culture? I don’t. I go to work every morning, have conversations with many friends and aquaintences and do my job. Ultimately MOST people will do this and lead happy and normal lives.
Why do children need to get along with other children? Do you work in a situation where everyone is the same? I work in an environment where there are people from teens all the way up to 90. (Seriously think he should retire, but I digress.)
Schools have a responsibility to teach Language, Math, Social studies/History/Geography, Science and Literature. They do not have a responsibility to teach culture or values. That is the job of the child’s parents.
This said, it is great to learn about different cultures and religions and values, but, that should be done on your own time, not school time. Maybe if we stopped worrying about incorporating everyone’s culture, more actual school work would get done.

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Lindsey On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:23 pm

I wish everyone would cut down on the snarky comments about people reading this section of Pioneer Woman whether they homeschool or not. I don’t homeschool but I enjoy reading about homeschooling and learning something new. Isn’t that the essence of homeschooling – being able to explore something you are interested in?

Cincha On Tuesday, July 19 at 5:52 pm

I agree, Lindsey, that it makes no sense to comment that this section should only be read by homeschooling parents. EVERYONE should be interested in the education of each child in the world–seriously. Educational attempts, even ones that some feel aren’t optimal, are still better than no education at all.

It’s also a public, open forum here-right? The more, the merrier, instead of the more, the warier!!! lol

Hi Kristen, first of all I’d like to say that your decision to take responsibility for your children’s education is a wise one. Your parents and I must have been homeschooling about the same time. This freedom in education has been a true blessing for us. I’m currently working on a manuscript about the many advantages we’ve enjoyed since ’85, and the various approaches taken by those who’ve chosen this path.

Melissa D. On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:37 pm

My concern with many articles like the one discussed in this blog post is the sweeping generalizations. I agree that there are probably many schools, especially public schools due to their limited resources, that do not do a great job of fostering a love of learning.

However, that is not true of ALL schools. I can very clearly remember my grade school teachers showing me how to look things up in an encyclopedia or dictionary when I had a question. They could have just answered my question but they wanted me to see that I had the power to find out the information for myself. I also know that often finding information on my initial question led to curiosity about other topics.

I can remember research projects that were specifically tailored to both allow for an in-depth dive into a topic of interest to the individual student and to teach research skills.

If a love of learning is not being fostered in a child, then it is a fault of that particular teacher and/or the school, not ALL SCHOOLS in general.

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Mrs. C On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:45 pm

Disclaimer: I am a public school science teacher with a passion for guiding students to THINK on their own. So, please excuse my verbosity. I have a lot to say about this matter.

I find it interesting that you interpret Kuszewski’s article as supporting homeschooling students rather than enrolling them in public schools. Her article is about teaching methodology. In fact, it appears as if her intended audience is public school teachers, administrators and policy-makers. Parents who homeschool are as likely to fall into traditional teaching roles (if not more likely) than teachers in public schools. The training teachers are currently receiving in universities and professional development courses is very much in line with the practices condoned by Kuszewski. Yes, teachers are highly trained in our field! (Interestingly Kuszewski’s article opens with a quote by Jean Piaget, whose research is fundamental to most pedagogy instruction educators receive while in college preparing to become public school teachers.)

Kuszewski’s article (though slightly biased) brings up excellent points for any educator to consider. However, her description of public schools is dated… I believe that in the last decade many (if not most) schools have experienced a paradigm-shift, resulting in more classrooms where discovery-based, inquiry learning is the norm. The schools Kuszeweski describes (where students sit in seats all day imitating the teacher and simply “memorizing” information) look nothing like the schools I have worked in.

Furthermore, it is not fair to presume that the Atlanta Public Schools scandal is an indicator of how all public schools function. While I fully admit that the public school system is not perfect, I would venture to say (based on my own observations) that most homeschooling situations aren’t perfect either. I really feel that you are woefully out of touch with what teaching looks like in most public schools. If you desire to homeschool your children because your lifestyle does not fit well with the schedule of a public school, go for it! If you love spending time teaching your children and you feel equipped to do so, more power to you! Homeschooling is a valid choice and can be a wonderful situation for some kids. But, if you are simply homeschooling because of dissatisfaction with public schools, I encourage you to go into area schools and really spend some time observing what teachers are offering in their classrooms. I think it will be an enlightening experience for you.

(To those who have commented that someone who doesn’t homeschool shouldn’t be reading this section of the blog… how rude. I didn’t realize you were in some sort of exclusive club… from what I can tell that’s not the intention of this blog. As a public school teacher, I enjoy reading the homeschooling section of Ree’s blog. There are often fresh approaches to teaching that I can adapt to my own classroom.)

Drie On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:03 pm

Mrs. C, I don’t think I could have put it better myself!

Having been a teacher, having a sister who was a teacher for almost 15 years, and many, many friends in the public school system, I am an advocate for doing what works best for your child.

No one tells a doctor how to practice medicine, no one tells a lawyer how to practice law, yet everyone tells a teacher how to teach. I’ve never understood why.

Dee Dee On Wednesday, July 20 at 1:52 pm

Like you, I don’t see the blog post that was linked as condemning schools. Rather, I see it as condemning an approach to education. I come from a very different viewpoint, as a parent to a 14 yo autodidact. My role is not that of a teacher, but as a guide. Together we work to find the resources, mentors, and classes that work for him. It was with great hesitation that I enrolled him in a writing class this year. Though he is dysgraphic, he enjoys writing using a keyboard and is becoming quite skilled. I didn’t want anything to get in the way of that process. It is only with the assurance of others who have taken classes from this individual that assured me it would be acceptable to try.

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Amber from Texas On Tuesday, July 19 at 1:56 pm

Wow. Awesome Post. It really made me think back to my school years, and I almost have to agree with the writer on this. School is all about the tests, structure of their own make up, etc. BUT there are some really wonderful, heartfelt, awesome teachers out there that try to get all the hooplah out of the way so they can actually teach – which probably isn’t enough. Yes, school is a conformity and it can impede learning with all the black and white… but it can also let a child blossom in their own way too. That’s what makes us human – we all learn differently and are different. It is like a double edged sword for sure. I am for and against public schools..
Hopefully this world we live in will one day change for the better.

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Rachel R On Tuesday, July 19 at 2:06 pm

A couple years ago I was struggling with the decision to homeschool. I read an article somewhere (absolutely no clue today where it was) where the author shared a dawning moment for herself, which in turn became my dawning moment. She was at a store and overheard a couple women talking. One of them stated she couldn’t wait until school was back in session and the other woman agreed. The author thought to herself how sad it was these women, and herself at that point, viewed their children going away each day as something to be happy about. Why do you have children if you prefer to spend more time away from them than with them? It was then I decided to homeschool and haven’t had a second thought regarding that decision.

I’m finding as I move along in this world of parenting there are always issues that parents take a firm stance on and believe their way is right way, no matter what. While I do care about society as a whole and the people that make up that society, I really don’t care all that much about how another parent chooses to raise their child. I’m thankful I live in a country that allows me the freedom to make the choices I want for my children, and I pray we continue to be allowed those freedoms.

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dobes On Tuesday, July 19 at 2:22 pm

I think parents have a pretty good idea of whether they want to homeschool or send kids to school, and they will find the evidence to support whichever position they choose. Of course, some schools and teachers shut down ‘creative disobedience’. On the other hand, a lot of parents want to homeschool so they can keep total control of everything their children are exposed to – how healthy is that? Overall, I think if depends completely on the parents, the children, and the local schools – there is no one answer.

Me? I homeschooled one from 7th grade – he is now a college graduate with a computer science degree. Another left the New York City public schools at 16, got a GED, and completed 2 years of college by the age of 18, at which time he left school to work in film production and has never looked back. The third thrived in the NYC schools, got a great education from dedicated teachers, and graduated college with a Bachelor of Music degree in Opera Performance. Three kids, three different solutions, three happy, productive adults!

97

Deeters On Tuesday, July 19 at 3:46 pm

As a parent, I just want to say HE’S 4!!! He needs to learn to want to learn and no offense but you hear this all the time from people with an older child who does what they are told. My daughter, 5.5, loves school and loves to be independent. My Son, 3.5, wants his sister to read to him and and asks for help with everything.

THIS IS ALL OUR FAULT!! We realize it now, but we raised this issue ourselves.
I think we want our kids to do everything sooner, faster and better.

Just my opinion. But I harp on this at home. My 3.5 year old can take his time growing up.

Great post. I have two boys ages 3 & 4 who I plan to homeschool. Tough decision when you are going against the norm.
Thanks for sharing this.
Heidi

99

Pauline On Tuesday, July 19 at 4:23 pm

I would have given just about anything for a homeschooling option 30 years ago!! The school system in our ,somewhat, upitty city was FORCED to provide extra services. They then set out to make it difficult to “qualifiy” and even more difficult to obtain the services they were supposed to provide. My oldest son had some type of reading disability, never actually diagnosed. But he was placed in a “disability” section for the ENTIRE curriculum, even though reading was his only problem and they never made any attempt to teach him to read better. [ I later found out that I was so "blessed" to be "helped" because I had qualified for food stamps and the city got extra money for "helping" me.] Because I then had become an annoyance to the schools by insisting that they do what they were supposed to do, the rest of my sons faced problems in the schools. Four of my six sons dropped out of High School, but they are doing VERY well. Two attended private high school and graduated with honors. One has a Masters! The Mayor at that time was followed by his “BFF” our current Mayor, who has been in power for 25 yr.!! He is rude, overbearing, and running the place like his own little kingdom. The town charter, or whatever it is, set up the “strong Mayor” type of government. That is spelled out to mean that the Mayor makes all decisions, has sole right to award contracts without bids, and the sole right to buy and sell any City assets. We, the citizens, recently attending a School Board meeting, were just subjected to a screaming tirade because the Board was attempting to stop a project he wanted. Out of about 200 people attending, half left with plans to just leave town, and half were going to research how to change a city charter when it states that the Mayor is the only one with the power to change it!! Children here are now able to be homeschooled,– after Federal intervention. But this dying town is just an extreme example of what government can do to people, and the harm that can be done to generations of children by regulations ment to enrich a select few. Education needs to also be gained from outside the established system, even if the established system is a good one. If not enough people are aware, it may be too late to save ourselves if it is not!! Without questioning and gaining knowledge we become sheep. Do what is best for your children to be well educated successful people.

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Rebecca On Tuesday, July 19 at 4:24 pm

This takes me back to my college class on the “institution of education” where we were discussing the culture of school. The observation was made in class that “children often enter schools as a question mark and leave schools as a period. Not because they had their questions answered, but because they learned not to ask them in the first place.” Just one step on a long journey towards homeschooling my own.

Jennifer H On Tuesday, July 19 at 5:41 pm

I had one teacher in high school that taught us to think….the rest made us regurgitate information. That one teacher is the only one that prepared me for college!

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Charlie has a brand new children's book out, and it's all about the day a new calf comes into the world! She sleeps in Charlie's bed, hogs all the attention...and hilarity ensues. Hope you and your kiddos enjoy the book!